Sviatoslav Baranovich is the last person to receive a sentence for pariticipating in December 19th demonstration against vote fraud in Minsk. He was convicted and sentenced to three years of strict supervised probation.
Baranovich will have to report on a regular basis to a special department for sentence execution. He cannot change address and he cannot leave his hometown without a special permit. What is more, he has to stay home between 7pm and 6am. The convict said that he expected such sentence and stressed that he was not going to refrain from his political activism.
Anatol Labiedzka, the leader of the United Civic Party of Belarus, thinks that the sentece is another „element of exerting psychological pressure on the society“. Labiedzka, himself was a subject to an interrogation, which was dismissed at the end of August. But he still believes that releasing political prisoners does not mean that the repression is over. „The power structure will be exploited even more, as the system is weaker.“ – thinks Labiedzka.
Belsat
