Trials of Viachaslau Siuchyk and Vintsuk Viachorka

Today, on 4 April, the judges of Minsk Savetski borough court Aksana Reliava and Liudmila Savastsian announced the verdict on the administrative cases brought against the well-known politician Viachaslau Siuchyk and the chair of Belarusian People’s Front Party Vintsuk Viachorka. In both cases the defendants were found guilty in ‘petty hooliganism’, but left unpunished because of insignificance of the violation.

We should remind that in the beginning of the trial Vintsuk Viachorka declared impeachment to the judge. He stated that Liudmila Savastsian often issued politically motivated decisions on cases of opposition activists, including him. Viachorka emphasized that this judge issued many unfair verdicts during the spring events of 2006 and was introduced into the EU list of non-grata persons for it.

After a short break the judge declined the impeachment and continued the trial. The testimony against Vintsuk Viachorka was given by the riot policemen Chychko and Suprun. The judge declined the petition for listening to the testimonies of Viachorka’s son Franak and the administration of the police regiment where the ‘police witnesses’ work. She found the defendant guilty, but left him without administrative punishment because of ‘insignificance’ of the violation. This ‘Solomon’s decision’ was repeated by her colleague, Aksana Reliava, who tried Viachaslau Siuchyk.

On 13 March the police detained Siuchyk and Viachorka and composed reports for petty hooliganism against them. The trials of the opposition activists were to have taken place on 23 March. However, Viachorka fell ill and therefore the trial was postponed to 4 April. The trial of Siuchyk was postponed to the same day as the defendant was allegedly later for the court sitting.