Political prisoner Viarhili Ushak released before trial
Viarhili Ushak with his fiancee shortly after release on July 29, 2020
After two months in detention, political prisoner Viarhili Ushak was released last evening from custody at pre-trial prison No. 1 in Minsk.
Ushak is still a suspect in the criminal case involving a dozen bloggers and campaign activists. He is facing a charge under Part 1, Art. 342 of the Criminal Code (preparation for or active participation in group actions that grossly breach public order).
A videographer with Siarhei Tsikhanouski’s YouTube channel “A Country for Living”, Ushak was arrested after an election picket on May 29 in Hrodna, together with Tsikhanouski and 15 more persons.
On June 8, seven of them faced formal charges. The following day, the arrested activists were called political prisoners by a coalition of leading human rights groups in Belarus. Later, Amnesty International said it considered all people arrested on political charges in Belarus to be prisoners of conscience.
