Human rights activists: The attorney and judge will face justice for this outrage

Lawyer, vice chairperson of the Belarusian Helsinki Committee Garry Pogoniailo is certain that “the case of 19 December” is forged and politically motivated.

There were no mass disorders on the square, no violence, arsons, raids, armed resistance to authorities. The broken windows can be classified as minor hooliganism at most.

“If the case is politically motivated, its main objective is to punish by any means, to intimidate the society, to make it fear this sick government. “Just” attorneys, dependable on the executive power, demand unreasonably harsh punishment verbalized in judges’ sentences,” Garry Pogoniailo told Radio Svaboda.

Former political prisoner Timofei Dranchuk, who spent nearly one year in prison in 2006, comments:

“The attorney is perfectly aware that in accordance with the articles of the Criminal code, he can be charged with demanding imprisonment for a crime that defendants did not commit. Otroschenkov has certainly not committed such a crime as mass disorders. At the moment the criminal case of mass disorders is still being investigated, and it is ridiculous to accuse some of the alleged participants of the crime which has not been proven yet. That is why no matter what sentence has been passed to the defendants today, or what prison term has been decided upon, I am sure that the attorney will face justice someday.”

Judge Tatiana Cherkas

The prosecutor Molodtsova