Human Rights Center Viasna Protests against Criminal Persecution of Pavel Krasouski

Human Rights Center Viasna

Minsk, 11 October 2006

We, members of the Human Rights Center Viasna express our decisive protest against the criminal persecution of the public activist Pavel Krasouski on far-fetched and groundless accusations.

Pavel Krasouski was detained on 5 October 2006 as a suspect in preparation of a number of explosions that took place in Vitsebsk in September 2005. On 11 October Aliaksandr Rasolka, senior investigator of especially important cases of the Republican prosecutor’s office, ruled to additionally suspect Pavel Krasouski of having committed a number of rapes and murders of under-aged girls in different parts of Belarus in 1999. During the latest interrogation the lawyer of Pavel Krasouski Pavel Sapelka was subject to unprecedented pressurization.

We consider the criminal persecution of Pavel Krasouski politically motivated and connected to his public and political activity;

We consider the direct pressurization of the lawyer Pavel Sapelka by the investigation inadmissible and revolting;

We demand the immediate cessation of the criminal persecution and release of Pavel Krasouski.