Authorities commute sentences imposed on Belsat TV journos Katsyaryna Andreyeva, Darya Chultsova
Belsatters Katsyaryna Andreyeva and Darya Chultsova have been in jail for 268 days. In late April, Minsk City Court rejected their appeals, upholding the sentences delivered.
On June 19, the Law on Amendments to the Codes of Criminal Liability came into force. Among other things, the amendments introduce new rules for counting terms of imprisonment; in accordance with them, one day of detention in a pre-trial detention centre is counted as 1.5 days in a minimum or medium security colony (previously, one day in a pre-trial detention centre was equal to one day of being in a penal colony).
On August 10, Frunzenski district court of Minsk ruled to reconsider the term of imprisonment for Katsyaryna Andreyeva and Darya Chultsova from the moment of their detention to the moment of consideration of the appeal against the sentence. This period (153 days) is counted by the formula 1 day for 1.5 days. Thus, the punishment imposed on the two girls has been reduced by 2.5 months; from now on, they are expected to be released not in November, but in September 2022.
They were arrested on November 15 for broadcasting live a violent dispersal of a rally in memory of murdered protester Raman Bandarenka and the destruction of a national memorial in the so called Square of Change by security forces. They were filming and commenting on what was going on from the apartment on the 14th floor of the house on Smarhouski Trakt Street in Minsk, where they had been invited by the hosts. After the rally, armed riot police broke the door to the apartment and detained the crew. On November 20, they were charged under Part 1 of Article 342 of the Criminal Code (organisation and preparation of actions that grossly violate public order).
Their case was considered in Frunzenski district court of Minsk within three days in February. The investigators claim the Belsat crew ‘coordinated protesters and called for further actions’, but the two media workers were just performing their professional duties by reporting from the scene. Moreover, in accordance with the authorities’ version, the livestream of the journalists resulted in the stoppage of 13 buses, 3 trolleybuses and 3 streetcar routes as well as the damage to the city transport agency Minsktrans (around 11,562 rubles). Public prosecutor Alina Kasyanchyk demanded the girls serve a two-year prison term each and their working equipment be confiscated in profit of the state. The defence lawyers asked the court to acquit the defendants due to the lack of evidence, but judge Natallya Buhuk took heed of the prosecution’s opinion.
On November 24, Belarusian human rights watchdogs recognised Katsyaryna Andreyeva and Darya Chultsova as political prisoners.
Behind bars, the girls were placed on the preventive register as ‘persons prone to extremism and other destructive actions’. Being added to the above mentioned list means more severe treatment of an inmate and restricting their rights even in prison, e.g. there is a special place in the cell where such prisoner has to be when a jailkeeper enters; they are also expected to be regularly called in for preventive conversations.
Belsat.eu
