Belarusian courts may be allowed to pass sentences in political cases in absentia
According to the State Secretary of the Security Council Alyaksandr Valfovich, the authorities want to try political emigrants in absentia and amend the law accordingly.
“Let’s say a person has committed a crime here, left, and lives quietly abroad. At the request of the law enforcement unit for political reasons, he will not be extradited from there. In this regard, it is proposed to introduce amendments to the law so that there would be an opportunity to prosecute.”
The court would sentence him in absentia depending on the severity of the offense. Of course, the person will be abroad, of course, they will not be extradited. But the fact that they are sentenced, for example, to two or three years’ imprisonment, or another term, decided by the court, will have a certain impact,” said Alyaksandr Valfovich in an interview with CTV, BelTA informs.
According to Valfovich, the initiative of the Investigative Committee is supported by the Supreme Court and the Prosecutor General’s Office. It is planned that the issue will be addressed at the next meeting of the Security Council with the participation of Alyaksandr Lukashenka.
