Activist complains about offensive actions by police officers

Nina Bahinskaya, an activist who was detained on January 22 while honoring the memory of the people killed during the Euromaidan protests in Kyiv, has filed a complaint in the Tsentralny District Prosecutor’s Office to challenge the offensive actions of police officers who brought her to the police station.

In her complaint, Ms. Bahinskaya, 67, says that the protesters were detained by police officers both wearing uniform and in plain clothes. After the activist was brought to the police department of the Tsentral district, she was, despite her age, forced to stand with her face against the wall. Moreover, police officers took the woman’s stick and ignored her requests to allow her to sit down. Then the activist was questioned.

“After they videotaped me, one of the employees of the Tsentralny district police station offered to look at the records of the administrative offense. Hearing my comments that I did not understand papers written in Russian, he began to insult me with rude swearing, insulting my human dignity and honor. To my protests, the officer responded with threats of violence. In particular, he said that I was old and it was time to bury me and that he would do it. The police officer was without a badge. The conversation was witnessed by other administrative detainees held that day in the room of the police officer on duty at the Tsentralny district police station in Minsk,” says Nina Bahinskaya.

According to Article 4 of the Law of the Republic of Belarus “On the Bodies of Internal Affairs”, one of the principles of law-enforcement bodies is to respect and protect the rights, freedoms and legitimate interests of citizens and humanism. The activist believes that the police officer committed an offense that is incompatible with service in the bodies of the Interior. Moreover, employees of the Tsentralny district police department have not returned the woman’s walking stick.

Nina Bahinskaya asks the Prosecutor to investigate the above facts, to identify the police officer who has violated her legal rights and to take action of prosecutorial response against the perpetrators, as well as to restore the violated rights and to order leadership of the police department to prevent such acts against citizens on the part of the police department in the future.

A similar complaint has been sent to the Minister of Internal Affairs.

An administrative case of Nina Bahinskaya for participation in an unauthorized mass event was heard in the Tsentralny District Court of Minsk on January 23. As a result, she was sentenced to a fine of 20 basic units (3,600,000 rubles). Five more participants in a memorial action at the monument to Taras Shevchenko were punished with arrest raging between 5 to 15 days.