Young Front activists in Homel to stand trial over solidarity with victims of Ukrainian protests

On April 17, the Tsentralny District Court of Homel will hear the charges brought against members of the Young Front opposition movement, Andrei Tsianiuta, Natallia Kryvashei and Stas Bula. They are accused of violating the order of holding mass events. According to the Young Front co-chair Andrei Tsianiuta, they will be tried for staging on February 22 a rally in memory of those killed in this winter’s Kyiv clashes. On February 22, the activists laid flowers and lit candles in Homel’s central Lenin Square. They were soon detained by the police. Together with the young people, the police detained Kanstantsin Zhukouski, who filmed the action.

According to Andrei Tsianiuta, they learned about the trial this morning, receiving text messages. “We called the number and a woman confirmed that she really was an employee of the court, and thus she invited us to a hearing. The court employee also added that we would receive summons from the court, but it weird because we have not received them,” said the Young Front co-chair.

Simultaneously, the Tsentralny police station is inspecting a complaint of a police officer, who said that during the arrest on February 22 Kanstantsin Zhukouski threatened his life. No case has been opened yet, as the investigator keeps interviewing witnesses.