Minsk City Court turns down appeal by UCP activist

Mikhail Babila, an activist of the United Civil Party, was detained on March 16 near Minsk’s Kamarouski market together with other UCP picketers. They were charged with violation of Art. 23.34 of the Administrative Code (participation in an unauthorized mass event).

Participants of the picket, which was agreed with the authorities as a pre-election event, were holding portraits of political prisoners, as well as of the disappeared politicians Viktar Hanchar and Yury Zakharanka, businessman Anatol Krasouski and journalist Dzmitry Zavadski.

A total of ten people were detained, including the United Civil Party chairman Anatol Liabedzka, head of the Belarusian branch of the international organization “Memorial” Uladzimir Ramanouski, 73, first deputy chairman of the organizing committee of the Belarusian Social Democratic Party (Narodnaya Hramada) Aliaksandr Arastovich, and cameramen Ales Silich and Henadz Veratsinski. They were taken to the police department of Minsk’s Savetski district.

On March 17, Judge Mikhail Yakubouski of the Savetski District Court found Mikhail Babila guilty and sentenced him to ten days in jail.

Today it became known that the Minsk City Court upheld the District Court's decision. Judge Khatkevich dismissed the UCP activist’s appeal.