Human rights defender Ales Bialiatski arrested (updated)
Ales
Bialiatski, Chair of the Human Rights Center Viasna,
was detained at about 4.45 p.m. near Peramoha Square, by people in
mufti who introduced themselves as officers of financial police. This
is all he managed to tell to his colleague Uladzimir Labkovich on the
phone. Then he was prohibited to talk.
Maybe, he was detained
by the same group of people in mufti who watched outside the house
where the office of the Human Rights Center Viasna is
situated.
Several documents were taken away as a result of
the search at the office of the Human Rights Center Viasna.
A computer was confiscated at Bialiatski's apartment. The search at
Viasna's office lasted
from 7.55 till 8.50 p.m. in presence of two witnesses. Then officers
of the Financial Investigations Department took Mr. Bialiatski away
for an interrogation, where a
lawyer was already waiting for him.
Bialiatski's
wife and son were taken to their summer residence, where a search was
conducted as well. Ales Bialiatski left copies of the minutes of the
search and the inventory of the arrested property at the
office.
Before the
search Ales Bialiatski was presented a warrant dated 4 August 2011
and was proposed to voluntary surrender the items, documents and
valuables that were liable to confiscation or had relation to the
criminal case, to which he stated that he didn't have such things.
The inventory of the confiscated items includes four letters of A4
format with signatures in foreign languages and sheet with
handwriting with names of citizens and phone numbers. The inventory
of the arrested property includes a Xerox, a computer table, a
computer chair and a fax.
Late in the evening it became known
that Ales Bialiatski was detained for 3 days to determine his status
in the criminal case.
