Psychiatric abuse in action

The Hanchar family of the town of Krasnapolle, Mahiliou region, has called upon Belarusian human rights activists and independent journalists to help protect their under-age daughter from psychiatry abuse, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reports. The Hanchars claim that their daughter Liudmila is about to be hospitalized by order of local police. According to Liudmila’s elder sister Volha, two policemen accompanied by a psychiatrist paid a visit to the family’s apartment to hospitalize the girl, claiming that she needed immediate medical intervention due to ‘severe mental disorder’, cause by a school incident a year ago, when the girl was badly beaten by her classmates. After Liudmila’s mother said the girl was out and demanded that the officials left the flat, the policemen pinioned the woman’s arms and the doctor made an injection of unknown medicine.
After the incident, Mrs.Hanchar lodged a complaint against the actions of the policemen and the psychiatrist.
According to a local human rights activist and journalist Mikalai Herdzi, ‘under the existing legislation, psychiatric treatment may be applied, unless it affects the sick person’s mental health. The present case deals with obvious abuse of authority by the doctor. In terms of morals and the law, the policemen were also far from acting in accordance with the law. They should not have done the psychiatrist’s bidding.’