Activist who called Lukashenka ‘impostor’ heavily fined


On March 26, activist and former political prisoner Zmitser Dashkevich was found guilty of violating the rules of holding mass events (Art. 23.34 of the Administrative Code).

He was tried in Tsentralny district court of Minsk. Judge Ivan Kastsyan imposed a fine of 1147.5 Belarusian rubles (appr. $570) on the activist.

The formal reason for charging Dashkevich was his calls to light candles in memory of victims of Stalinist purges in Kurapaty, a mass executions site near Minsk.

The Minsk police grabbed former political prisoner Zmitser Dashkevich during Sunday’s authorised concert on the occasion of 101st anniversary of the Belarusian People’s Republic (BNR) right in front of the eyes of his pregnant wife Nasta Dashkevich and other attendees. Shortly before the detention, Dashkevich delivered a speech sharply criticizing suppressors of freedom and enemies of Belarus’ independence. He also recalled the crimes of the Soviet regime and called president Alyaksandr Lukashenka ‘impostor’.

According to the human rights centre Viasna, the police detained 15 persons who were about to celebrate the Freedom Day in Minsk on March, 25.

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