Joint statement of BHC and Viasna on Andrei Haidukou’s case

In connection with the expected court hearing of the criminal case of Andrei Haidukou on charges of high treason, the Belarusian Helsinki Committee and the Human Rights Center “Viasna” consider it necessary to draw attention to the following aspects.

The case has received a lot of publicity both within the country and abroad. This is largely due to the lack of information about the progress of the investigation, and the facts of violation of the rights of the accused to have access to counsel.

Human rights defenders expressed their concern over the fact that after Haidukou’s lawyer was forced to sign an agreement of non-disclosure of information the defense was denied the opportunity to publicly report on violations of the rights of his client.

Given the nature of the charges brought against Andrei Haidukou and the social significance of the criminal case, as well as the excessive secrecy of information on the progress of the investigation, we call upon the authorities to provide for an open trial, during which all persons concerned could assess the validity of the charges and the legality of the prosecution and the trial.