Political prisoner Yana Paliakova committed suicide

On 7 March Yana Paliakova, who has been recently sentenced to 2.5 years of personal restraint by Salihorsk court, committed suicide.

The information was announced at the Assembley of NGO congress that is taking place in Minsk.

On 7 March judge Burautsou of Salihorsk court found Paliakova guilty of violating Article 400, part 2 of the Criminal Code – ‘knowingly false delation’. Representatives of Belarusian Helsinki committee Leanid Marhotka and Valer Shchukin were present at court. The court centenced Yana Paliakova to 2.5 years of restraint of liberty  and demanded to compensate ‘moral damage’ to the police officer Puhachou who had retired recently.

In November of 2008 there were many reports about persecution of Salihorsk human rights activist by law-enforcers. Yana Paliakova informed that she had been detained by policemen for her oppositional activities several times. It was also reported that the woman was beaten in police department and her hand was about to be broken. It is also important to mention that Yana Paliakova was a member of Volha Kazulina's initiative group during the last parliamentary elections.

‘The sentence was a shock for Yana, - human right activist Valer Shchukin commented. I spent a day with her after the trial, and she was saying one thing: ‘I am not going to be a prisoner’. It was really a shock for a normal person. I remember the first time when I was imprisoned. That time my wife was ashamed to go out, it seemed to be shame for her. Probably it was the same with Yana. She felt helpless and was unable to resist this persecution and defamation. I attended many trials, but this trial was a real lawlessness.’