Braslau: Kastus Shytal detained for handing out leaflets
The activist of the
organizing committee of the Belarusian Christian Democracy was handing out electoral
leaflets of the presidential candidate Vital Rymasheuski in Braslau.
He was detained at about 4 p.m. on 2 December and guarded to the Braslau
District Police Department. At first the policemen studied the content of the
leaflets and then stated that there were calls to come to Kastrychnitskaya Square on 19 December.
To be on the safe side, they also faxed the leaflet to the Vitsebsk Region
Police Department, composed a report for the unlawful distribution of leaflets
and confiscated them. However, they had to return the leaflets and released a
detainee after getting a telephone call from Vitsebsk. They even helped Mr. Shytal
hitchhike so that he could return to the town of Hlybokaye where he lives.
Commenting on this incident, Pavel Seviarynets (a proxy of Mr. Rymasheuski),
stated:
’These leaflets were printed with the observance of the legal requirements and
their content was approved, that’s why the police showed some hyper-vigilance
in this case. I pity the guy – he wanted to help our candidate, but had to
spend 3 hours at the police station instead. It seems that policemen react extremely
morbidly to the calls to come out to the square on 19 December if they see any sedition
in the electoral leaflets of Vital Rymasheuski.’
Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections
