End of ‘liberalization’? Opposition leader Viachaslau Siuchyk detained and beaten

On April 19, police officers detained Viachaslau Siuchyk, leader of the Razam opposition movement, as he was returning home at about 3 a.m. According to his mother, police officers were waiting for him at the entrance, and then started beating him. They tore his jacket and sweater and handcuffed the activist.

Viachaslau Siuchyk was brought to the police department where he faced charges of disorderly conduct (Art. 17.1 of the CAO) and disobedience to police officers (Art. 23.4). The charges were expected to be heard later the same day, but the trial was eventually put off to a later date, after it turned out that the police report indicated a wrong time of detention. In particular, the papers were filled in even before Siuchyk was detained.