Homiel human rights activist, wife searched at Belarus-Lithuania border


Human rights activist Andrey Stryzhak and his wife Yauheniya, an editor at the website of the Independent Trade Union of Radio Electronic Industry (REP), were detained at the Belarusian-Lithuanian border on Tuesday evening.

They were taken off the bus for a detailed inspection at the border crossing Kamenny Log.

Their detention is another fact of persecuting independent trade unionists, Stryzhak told belsat.eu.

“When a border guard ordered us to leave the bus, he did not show any document and gave no explanation of why we were being detained. I was there when they were speaking to the Customs Deputy Director over the phone, because they needed an appropriate ruling to carry out rigorous inspection. At the moment of the detention, they did not have it – they are drawing it up now!” Stryzhak stressed.

Independent legal assessment will be given to the situation, he promised.

At 23:20 border guards gave back the Stryzhaks’ documents and released them. However, the couple failed to catch the train to their native Homiel.

As reported earlier, on March 8 REP Deputy Chairperson Zinaida Mikhnyuk and activist Hanna Dus were taken off the train; their belongings were deliberately searched.

belsat.eu

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