140 Students of Belarusian State Polytechnic University :: Charter'97 :: News

More than 140 signatures of second-year students of history department have been collected in support of Yury Bachyshcha, a lecturer of Slavonic history chair of the Belarusian State Polytechnic University. They were submitted to the court and attached to the file on reinstating him at work. Students have signed the petition despite the pressure by the administration of the university. The dean’s office had warned that five students from those who had signed the petition would be evicted.

As we have informed, a trial is continuing in the court of Maskouski district of Minsk on reinstating Yury Bachyshcha at work. He was fired after a presidential campaign in which he participated as an independent observer. The direction of the chair and the department offered him to vacate the position of his own accord, however he refused. In a few days he was told that he is fired for an “immoral deed”. The lecturer hasn’t been informed what kind of immoral action it was.

Yury Bachyshcha is convinced that he has been fired on political grounds and his activism, that is why he filed a lawsuit for reinstating him at work. In response he was charged with the university that he distributes materials insulting honour and dignity of the president among students.

These materials appear in the case. A CD with cartoons with a character reminding Lukashenka, was brought by the chair of the university to the court. However the prosecutor’s office hasn’t found any confirmation that Yury Bachyshcha has any bearing to that disc.