Opposition activist Barys Khamaida detained in Vitsebsk for Pahonya coat of arms

Barys Khamaida has been coming to the “blue house” in Vitsebsk holding a painting “Pahonya”, presented to him by a same-name group of Belarusian artists.

Journalist Uladzimir Padhol told this to the Charter’97 press center.

Teh Vitsebsk region executive committee took a decision on establishing Pahonya image as the coat or arms of the region. According to Uladzimir Padhol, opposition activist Barys Khamaida “was voluntary familiarizing city dwellers with an image of a horseman with a sword”.

Khamaida was detained for allegedly he was “spoiling the landscape of the town”. The activist is in a militia department now, a report is being drawing up against him. Militia officers confiscated a book of Lukashenka’s quotes “Narodny Televizor”, made up by Uladzimir Padhol. According to Padhol, militiamen are writing down Lukashenka’s quotations in the report.