News on anarchist political prisoners in Belarus, October 2023
Anarchist Siarhei Ramanau continues to draw in imprisonment. Recently he sent his drawing entitled Relax (see the picture). In Belarus, it is prisoner’s obligation to work.
Anarchist Siarhei Ramanau continues to draw in imprisonment. Recently he sent his drawing entitled Relax (see the picture). In Belarus, it is prisoner’s obligation to work.
From ABC Belarus
31 anarchists and antifascists continue to serve their sentences in Belarusian prisons, one more person is under the limitation of freedom regime at home.
From Anarchist Black Cross Belarus
Only in August we got to know the outcomes of a trial of Dzmitry Dubouski, which had taken place inside a penal institution on 27 June. The judge decided to transfer Dzmitry from a penal colony to a prison (with significantly harsher conditions), allegedly for “repeated disruption of order and breaking of regulations.” Upon the sentencing, Dzmitry was transferred to a prison nr. 4 in Mahilioŭ.
From Anarchist Black Cross Belarus
Aliaksandr Frantskevich* was in a punishment cell for all of June, where he was placed on 28th March. Although he was scheduled to be released on 15th June, his stay in the punishment cell was prolonged once again. His next release date was moved to 6 July.
From Anarchist Black Cross Belarus
After that, the anarchist was transferred to correctional camp No. 11, where they systematically began to put pressure on him – regularly placing him in a punishment cell. On March 24, Nikita Emelyanov turned 23 years old. This is his fourth birthday, which he met in prison.
From ABC Belarus
Daniil Chul is an anarchist from Brest. Detained on 2 March 2021 on suspicion of involvement in a criminal organisation of anarchists and gross violation of public order (Articles 285 and 342 of the Criminal Code).
From ABC Belarus
On 7 February, Dzmitry Dubouski’s appeal hearing took place in the Minsk City Court. Judge Jauhien Pisarevich left the sentence unchanged. Dzmitry’s cumulative sentence for participation in direct actions in 2008-2010 and in 2020 is 20 years of imprisonment.
From Anarchist Black Cross Belarus
In 28 December 2022, the ministry of justice annulled licenses of a number of lawyers, including Viktar Matskievich, who had defended anarchists Ihar Alinievich and Akikhira Gajeuski-Khanada. Earlier, on 1 December an extraordinary attestation of Viktar Matskievich took place. The certifying committee decided that the lawyer allegedly has insufficient qualification, and then the ministry ruled that Matskievich cannot perform his professional tasks. Viktar Matskievich worked as a lawyer for more than 20 years.
From avtonom
Ihar Alinevich , an anarcho-partisan sentenced to 20 years for participating in the Belarusian uprising, went on hunger strike. Members of the Anarchist Black Cross collected the latest information about Igor from the Facebook of his mother Valentina Alinevich and from his close friends. Here's what we were able to find out.
From Anarchist Black Cross Belarus
A full-scale war in Ukraine has been going on for over three months now. The anarchist movement has responded to the Russian invasion in different ways during these three months – some have begun unconditionally supporting their comrades in Ukraine, while others continue to repeat the story of NATO aggression in the region. We also felt it necessary to make a statement about our view of events.
from Anarchist Black Cross Belarus
Most of our comrades who have sent letters to imprisoned anarchists and anti-fascists have most likely not received any response. This is primarily due to the incredible censorship regime, which in many cases does not allow any correspondence through. [...] For those who send letters this situation is also extremely demotivating: it is unclear whether the letter has reached the comrades or not. [...] That is why we recommend writing letters through our online form. You can do it in Russian or English. After we receive your letters we pass them through our own channels to the comrades in prison. This way if you send letters through our form you can be sure that the prisoners will receive your messages. [...] We ask that you do not use the form to write simple messages such as “hang in there” and so on. Take at least 15 minutes to write letters to your comrades.
from Anarchist Black Cross Belarus
My worldview – how I think and what I believe – is a purely personal matter. The Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus applies so far only to actions. But let’s get back to anarchism. What does the public prosecutor mean by it? The overthrow of the state system, inciting social hatred, riots, extremist destructive activity. What do I mean by it? Solidarity and mutual aid, personal and collective freedom and responsibility, rejection of oppression in its many forms. As an anarchist, for 10 years I’ve been cooking for the homeless and poor people on the streets of Minsk, which the “welfare state” does not care about, unlike military parades. As an anarchist I have been involved in various educational, social and environmental projects. As an anarchist, I contributed to the preservation of the Kotovka Square in Selkhozposelok. As an anarchist, I do not consider it acceptable to kill and exploit animals. As an anarchist, I am ready to simply help a person in any way I can.
from Anarchist Black Cross Belarus
On April 22 the verdict was pronounced in the so-called “Pramen case”. Aliaksandr Bialou, Jauhen Rubashka, Artsiom Salavei were sentenced to 5 years in prison, another Artsiom Salavei – to 4.5 years. The gravamen is unknown, since the trial was held in camera.
from Anarchist Black Cross Belarus
...about detention, being under arrest, and his fighting spirit
On Friday 22 April this year anarchist comrade Evgeniy Rubashko along with 3 other anarchist comrades was sentenced to 5 years of penal colony for participating in protests in 2020 and being part of Pramen anarchist collective. This interview was taken before sentencing in January 2022, where we tried to talk to him about his political views and the situation in prison.