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Paval Sevyarynets presented a book written in corrective labour facility

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Paval Sevyarynets presented a book written in corrective labour facility

A presentation of the book “Belarusian Depth” of the former political prisoner Paval Sevyarynets has taken place in the capital of Belarus.

On the day before the event the author told that the book is an attempt “to take a look which is more attentive and which is sharper than a usual one.”

“A free person told me in prison once: do not ask why, and do not ask what for,” Paval Sevyarynets said opening the presentation. And he started to read an extract from his essay, Radio Svaboda informs.

The moderator of the event, Andrei Kim, presented another participant of the ceremony by the title of the last essay of the book – “Volya” (both a personal name and “Freedom” in Belarusian). It was Paval’s wife, Volha (Volya). Thoughts about her inspired Paval while he was writing this book.

Volha Sevyarynets: “A corrective labor facility is not among the best places for spending two years of one’s life. But not the worst one either. Without it there would be no these 84 essays, new friends, no solidarity expressed to Paval by many people.”

Paval told, that it is true, and that while serving the term, he added about a hundred of new names to his address book.

The book contains 84 essays, which had been published by “Nasha Niva” newspaper regularly, while Paval was serving his first term. In his speech the editor-in-chief of the newspaper Andrei Skurko mentioned that he visited Paval during his previous term at the correctional facility in the village of Malae Sitna. Then his book “Letters from the Forest” was published.

Andrei Skurko: “We should note that Paval proved to be stronger than people surrounding him. it is very difficult. In the moments of hesitation we should recall Sevyarynets.”

Skurko wished Sevyarynets to write the next book at home, among the people who love him.

Among other who delivered speeches during the presentation were a writer Ales Pashkevich, the first Ambassador of independent Belarus to Germany, Pyotr Sadouski, a painter Ales Marachkin.

It is the 5th book by Paval Sevyarynets. The first book, “The National Idea: Phenomenology of Belarus” was published 9 years ago. Later “Letters from the Forest” (2007), “To a Brother” (2007), “I Love Belarus: 200 Phenomena of the National Idea” (2008) were published.

We remind that Paval Sevyarynets was arrested on December 19, 2010 on the way from the Square and imprisoned in the KGB remand prison. He was charged with “organizing mass riots and participation in them”, later the case was re-classified as “organizing and preparation of actions, grossly violating public order, or active participation in them.”

On May 16, 2011 a judge of Zavadski district court of Minsk Zhana Brysina sentenced Sevyarynets to 3 years of “khimiya” – a restriction of freedom with sending to a correctional labour facility of open type. Paval served the sentence in the village of Kuplin, Pruzhany district, where the book “Belarusian Depth” was written.

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