Journalist Beaten Up By Riot Policemen: I Was Kicked Several Dozen Times

A journalist Pavel Dabravolski has filed a police statement about being beaten up by riot policemen in the building of the court, where “the case of graffiti artists” was tried.

The incident took place while activists Pavel Siarhei and Maxim Shytsik were expelled from the courtroom. They had unfurled the banner “No to political persecution” and were chanting “Art is no crime!” They were fined 45 basic units (Br9.45 million), Siarhei – 50 basic units (Br10.5 million), BelaPAN reports.

“When I saw that people with were taken out of the court room with twisted arms, I switched on my phone and started to capture that on video. The detainees were taken into some corridor, I followed them. The door was closed behind me, and I was pushed into the office,” – tut.by quotes its employee Pavel Dabravolski.

The reporter stressed that he had a press card in his hands, and he warned several times that he was a representative of a mass media outlet.

Shytsik, Siarhei and people in mufti were in the room. As it turned out later, they were riot policemen, as some of them testified against the journalist and the activists in the trial later.

“They snatched the camera and the press card out of my hands, and started beating me up. According to my estimation, they kicked me for about several dozen times. I tried to hide my face in my hands, and turned my back to them. Then they twisted my arms, and someone from the law enforcers placed his foot on my face,” – Dabravolski said.

According to him, the court lasted for half an hour. “The judge studied the materials of the case. She asked to describe the situation. There were three witnesses: one from the police, and two riot policemen in mufti. The policeman said he had not seen me in the courtroom, and the riot policemen said that I attacked them, defending the activists. And traditionally, I was using foul language,” – the journalist said.

The riot policemen stated that Dabravolski was injured defending his friends. In reality, the journalist and the activists had. been unacquainted with each other.

“I want justice. And [I want] such things never to happen again in the future. I am going to see that through to the end – I have filed a report, I am going to have the battery-induced injuries verified, I am going to turn to the court. It’s not the main point that I am a journalist. Law enforcers cannot beat up people in a civilized society,” – the reporter said.