Commutation Refused to Prof. Yuri Bandazhewski :: Charter'97 :: News

After having served a half of the term prisoner count on commutation of the punishment. After that the case is considered by the court, the prisoner usually is sent to a special settlement with limited freedom of movement. However, this commutation is refused to Yuri Bandazhewski, a world-famous scientist, radiologist, professor. In 2001 head of Homiel medical institute Yuri Bandazhewski and his colleague pro-rector Uladzimir Rawkow were sentenced to 8 years of imprisonment for a bribe allegedly received from university entrants’ parents. The findings of the scientific research by Prof. Bandazhewski and his colleagues, who had been studying affect of radiation on people’s health, disagreed with the state policy in this sphere.

Professor’s wife Halina tells about the situation:

- On January 6 me husband was to be removed to the settlement, and now it is April. According to the law, all measures related to the change of punishment, are to be made within one month. Up till now no changes for the better are seen. In January a half of the term has passed. The prisoners who were serving their sentence together with my husband, are gradually transferred to a settlement. It came to everybody except my husband.

I came to the Committee on Implementation of Punishments to ask about the state of affairs. I was told that my husband has a poor health, a stomach ulcer, he has undergone operation, that is why he cannot do hard physical labour in which prisoners in the settlement zone are engaged. They are temporizing and they obviously have their motives for that. More likely, in order not to release him from prison at all. Something incredible is happening with my husband. Probably, they want to wait till another Chernobyl anniversary is over, so that he was less accessible for visitors and journalists. Or they are just playing for time and are not going to release him at all. This is my opinion.