Riot Police Detains Opposition Activists in Vitsiebsk

08.10.2005.

After the explosions of 14 and 22 September in Minsk the police patrols are enhanced by Minsk riot squad police. On 6 October the police detained the members of Christian Democratic Party BPF Aliaksandr Salauian and Uladzimir Plieshchanka for the third time during the last 10 days. These activists hand out the editions of their party outdoors on Mondays and Thursdays.

The police also detained the non-party opposition activist Barys Khamaida, who distributes Arche magazine and his own newspaper Vybar. However, on 6 October the police were suspicious about the two copies of Naviny BPF bulletin they found in his bag. As a result, they decided to take him to court. However, a higher police officer told them not to this, as the detainee managed to prove he didn’t hand out those editions. Khamaida was released, but when he came home, he met the court officer, who wanted to attach his property for payment of the earlier non-paid fines. The total sum of the fines is really great: the last one alone is 4 million rubles (Khamaida was sentenced to it for celebration of Military Glory Day). However, the court martial didn’t manage to find the property he could attach to cover the 4 millions.