Political prisoner Palina Sharenda’s husband to stand trial for ‘slandering president’
Andrey Sharenda is accused of slander of the president of Belarus (Article 367 of the Criminal Code). The maximum penalty under this article is five years of imprisonment.
The trial is to start on June 28 in Maskouski district court of Brest, it will be conducted by judge Maryia Aliferuk. At the moment, Andrey Sharenda is placed under house arrest.
On June 9, Maskouski district court passed a verdict in the case of Andrey’s wife, local activist Palina Sharenda-Panasyuk.
The woman was arrested in her own apartment five months ago. She was charged under three articles of the Criminal Code: Art. 368 (‘insulting president’), Art. 369 (‘insulting a representative of the authorities’) and Art. 364 (‘violence or threat of violence against a police officer’).
On January 3, the police knocked down the door, raided Sharendas’ place and seized a number of things. At that moment, Andrey was serving a term for participating in a protest rally in November; Palina was detained and taken to the remand prison in handcuffs.
In late February, Palina Sharenda-Panasyuk was taken to the so-called Navinki from the local detention facility on February, 23. According to her husband, she was forced to undergo a forensic psychiatric examination at the Republican Scientific and Practical Centre for Mental Health in Navinki residential area in Minsk.
In March, she managed to pass a letter from pre-trial detention centre Nr 7, in which she wrote about prisoners’ putting to torture.
Public prosecutor Pavel Krupenich demanded the defendant get 2 years of imprisonment. On Wednesday, judge Yauhen Brehan took heed of the demand.
Andrey and Palina are parents to two minor kids (11 and 4 years old).
belsat.eu
