Fascists Make Threats against Belarusian Oppositionists

A member of the Conservative Christian Party Belarusian Popular Front Jan Dzyarzhautsau has informed that on October 29 in the evening his 18-year-old son was beaten up by two unknown. Mr Dzyarzhautsau believes that the assault on his son could have been made by those who sent a letter with threats to him this August. The letter was signed by the unregistered organization Russian national Unity (RNU).

An 18-year-old student Alyaksandr Dzyarzhautsau does not know the guys who set upon him with blows October 29 at 11 p.m. when he was on his way home. His father Jan Dzyarzhautsau read the results of the forensic medical examination to Radio Svaboda. He sent his son for examination before addressing a complaint to the police or prosecutor’s office:

“A. Dzyarzhautsau had bruises near his left eye and nose, a wound of the upper lip’s mucous membrane, a scratch of the left hand, palm, and a scratch on the right forearm”.

Alyaksandar Dzyarzhautsau told that two persons attacked him from behind and beat him. “An idea entered my mind immediately that I received a letter with threats from RNU earlier, and now they have proceeded to from threats to actions”.

On August 15 a member of the Conservative Christian Party Belarusian Popular Front Jan Dzyarzhautsau received a letter which ended with words: “Have a care! Our avenging sword can reach you in any place and in any time!” The same letters have been received by non-party activists Barys Khamajda and Syarzhuk Kavalenka, and by an acting chairman of the regional branch of the Conservative Christian Party Belarusian Popular Front Jan Taupyha. Mr Dzyarzhautsau was the only one who sent a complaint to the Prosecutor’s office and demanded to open a criminal action against those who distribute letters with threats on behalf of the organization unregistered in Belarus. The prosecutor’s office forwarded the complaint to the police department of Chyhunachny district.

After verification of facts by a district police officer Yauhen Katskevich policemen answered to Mr Dzyarzhautsau that the criminal action wouldn’t be opened. The reason for that was that the RNU is not registered officially, and participation in this organization cannot be proved.

It is unknown whether a criminal case would be initiated against persons who had threatened to the activists.

Meanwhile Jan Dzyarzhautsau is preparing another complaint to the prosecutor’s office. It concerns the attack against his son after threats of the unknown and not punished persons. In his statement he underlined that the letter had stated his son would be punished after a white-red-white flag would appear in the city. And his son was beaten up in an hour and a half after a white-red-white flag appeared in Vitsebsk once again. It happened October 29 late at night.

For the last year and a half letters with threats from neo-fascists have been received by the chairman of the city branch of the United Civil Party Alena Zaleskaya, the editor-inchief of the independent newspaper “Vitebskiy Kurjer” Uladzimir Bazan and a literary director of “Lyalka” theatre Viktoryja Dashkevich. All of them filed police reports, applications with prosecutor’s office and even KGB. However these institutions haven’t instituted criminal proceedings.