Viasna appealed to the UN Working Group on the political prisoner sentenced to imprisonment for solidarity

Viasna Human Rights Center sent a complaint to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention against 64-year-old political prisoner Iryna Takarchuk, who was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment. Viasna Legal Service reported on the violations in this case.

Iryna Takarchuk is the 64-year-old mother of former political prisoner Volha Takarchuk. Iryna was arrested as part of a raid on the families of political prisoners in connection with the activities of INeedHelpBY. In August, Iryna was sentenced to three years in a penal colony for promoting extremism (Article 361-4 of the Criminal Code).

In its appeal, Viasna Legal Service states that the woman's detention is arbitrary and illegal.

"There are no legal grounds for the detention," the lawyers said. "Iryna was detained under the vague and overly broad wording of the anti-extremism legislation and the extrajudicial decision to recognize INeedHelpBY as an extremist formation. This violates the principle that no one should be punished for actions that were not clearly illegal at the time they were committed."

Lawyers note that the deprivation of liberty is triggered by the exercise of freedom of expression and association. Iryna was prosecuted for receiving help through the INeedHelpBY service, which allows anyone to confidentially help the families of political prisoners. Supporting political prisoners and their families is considered by the authorities to be speaking out against them and is prosecuted on that basis.

"The deprivation of liberty is discriminatory," the Legal Service emphasizes. "Iryna's persecution is linked to her association with a social initiative, which the authorities consider to be opposition (in the broad sense) to them. This violates international norms protecting people from discrimination on the basis of political opinion, membership of certain communities and other grounds."

The deprivation of liberty was carried out without a fair trial. Iryna was denied the right to appear before a judge immediately after her arrest. In addition, the Belarusian judicial system in general is not independent and actively participates in politically motivated persecution.

If you have faced violations by the state, contact Viasna Legal Service for help in filing an appeal: @zvarot96 | zvarot@spring96.org