Human Rights Watchdogs: Police had no right to arrest Khvedaruk for rally held 9 months ago

The arrest of the “young Front” activist Zmitser Khvedaruk for participation in the rally held on May 1, 2008 is illegal.

As it has been informed earlier, on January 28 Zmitser Khvedaruk, an activist of the “Young Front”, was arrested for 10 days. Such a verdict has been delivered to him for participation in the rally “Belarus to Europe” on May 1, 2008.

As we have informed, on January 28 several policemen burst into Khvedaruk’s flat. They explained that allegedly had an order to take him to a military enlistment office forcibly to be present at a military board. The military enlistment office’s interest to the recruit looks strange as he is a full time student of Biblical Theological college and has a determent. However, Khvedaruk was guarded to the military enlistment office forcibly.

But from the military enlistment office the activist was taken to the police department of Pershamajski district. They found in a database that the young man hadn’t served the arrest for participation in the rally “Belarus to Europe” on May 1, though more than half a year has passed since that time. Then the oppositionist was to be checked by a medical board. Doctors found him to be able-bodied and took him to the detention centre in Akrestsin Street to serve his sentence.

The human rights centre “Viasna” finds the actions of the regime totally illegal. According to the Article 13.6 of the Code of Execution Procedure, “administrative punishment cannot be inflected if it hadn’t been inflicted within three months after its coming into force”. Thus, the regime cracked down on the young activist having violated laws flagrantly and insolently once again.

Yesterday human rights activists filed an appeal to the prosecutor’s office of Maskouski district of Minsk against illegal actions of policemen.