Kalinkavichy District Court punishes UCP activist Dzianis Rabianok with a fine

On 7 June the hearings on the administrative case against the activist of the United Civil Party Dzianis Rabianok finished at the Kalinkavichy District Court. He was found guilty of causing bodily injury (art.9.1 CAO) and punished with a fine of 1 million rubles.

On 13 April, according to the activist, he suffered in a conflict with its neighbor, who sprayed pepper spray into his eyes. The young man was taken to hospital where an ophthalmologist diagnosed him with a burn of the eyes. Meanwhile, ten days after it Dzianis Rabianok learned that the police had charged him with violating Article 9.1 of the Code of Administrative Offences by beating the neighbor.

The young man filed a complaint with the head of the Kalinkavichy District Police Department and the prosecutor of the Kalinkavichy district, pointing at violations of the law on the part of the police during the check-up on the incident. The violation report was drawn up in advance, befor the The protocol was drawn up in advance, even before the questioning of witnesses, which was stated by the police inspector. The witnesses who could confirm the innocense of the activist, weren't questioned. Dzianis Rabianok was not directed to a forensic medical examination immediately after the incident, it was done only a week later, on 19 April and without examination of the victim. The local police inspector refused to hold a repeated examination with a questioning of the ophtalmologist and the medical attendant for getting a detailed description of his injuries.

The head of the the police department did not even answer the complaint, and the prosecutor responded that all his legal requirements would be considered by the court. The court hearings were held intermittently from 20 May to 7 June.

At the trial, Dzianis Rabianok petitioned to summon witnesses to the incident: the ophthalmologist, the medical attendant and the policemen who conducted the examination. "As a result, the medical attendant and the ophtalmologist confirmed that I received injuries and described them. The testimonies of my witnesses were heard as well. However, the court did not take this into account, and did not even consider the question whether I was assaulted and any bodily injuries were inflicted to me, including the burn of the eyes," pointed the activist.

According to him, the court refused to summon the police officers who held the check-up. The court ignored the fact that the offender didn't present to the court the pepper spray, which he had sprayed in the eyes of the young man, although it was necessary to find out whether such sprays were allowed on the territory of Belarus. The police didn't show any interest to the spray during the check-up and didn't take it for examination.

According to Dzianis Rabianok, his case is "a kind of illustration of the depravity of our system". "I I hoped to ask the policemen all inconvenient questions: about the examination, the refusal to question witnesses and the refusal of the DPD head to consider my appeal. However, they weren't even summonsed to court. It's a shame that that the court was not interested and the origin of the pepper spray which was used for the attack – whether it was legally allowed, where it was bought and why it wasn't taken for examination. The court in fact did not take into consideration the explanations of defense witnesses, but trusted to the only witness of the accusation. It is quite surprising that the testimonies of the medic and the medical attendant were ignored," commented the activist.

Dzianis Rabianok considers himself completely innocent and will appeal the ruling to the higher courts. He also believes that all these events – the attack on him and further administrative prosecution are directly related to his political and social activities: an active participation in the work of the United Civil Party and repeated participation in election campaigns at various levels and social activities.