"It's hard to talk about, but people forget about it." Political prisoner in the Zeltser case on the anniversary of his detention Video

The Zeltser case is one of the most high-profile and massive political cases in Belarus. On September 28, 2021, IT specialist Andrei Zeltser and KGB officer Dzmitry Fedasiuk were killed in a shootout in a Minsk apartment. This unprecedented event caused a surge of emotions among Belarusians. At least 124 people were convicted for comments condemning the actions of KGB officials in criminal cases. The vast majority of them were imprisoned. Almost all served their sentences in completely inhumane conditions and were released at the end of their terms. Among them is a 38-year-old creative worker Artsiom Zadrutski. We publish his monologue on the anniversary of the Zeltser case.

"Everyone says that torture and mistreatment in prisons have stopped, that we need to turn the page and somehow move on, and look for new ways to interact with those who tortured us. I believe that this is not true, and [the torture] hasn't stopped to this day. It continues every day. I personally encountered this in prison: from overcrowded cells to actual beatings and the use of tasers, batons, and everything else."