Minsk: Anarchist movement shows solidarity with arrestee over Critical Mass cycling event
A group of Belarusian anarchists placed the banner ‘Freedom For Anarchist Dzmitry Paliyenka!’ on a bridge in downtown Minsk.
‘Today they arrested a cyclist. Tomorrow anyone might be in his shoes,’ anarchists said on their website.
On April 29, about 35 cyclists gathered in central Minsk to take part in a social event that was aimed at ‘reclaiming the streets’, i.e. asserting their rights.
The cyclists were moving along the road, but were soon cut up by a police bus. As a result, at least six people were detained, including Dzmitry Paliyenka and Belarusian Helsinki Committee observer Kiryl Kazhenau. The detainees were reportedly thrown into the bus, forced to face the floor, and suffered blows in their stomachs and faces. The bicycles were thrown on top of the detainees, who were then brought to the district police department.
Later the most of them were released, but Dzmitry Paliyenka is still under arrest. Charged with using violence against a police officer (Article 364 of the Criminal Code), the activist is facing up to 6 years in prison.
