Martseleu wants to leave Belarus to have treatment course

Syarhei Martseleu, who was given a 2-year suspended sentence for participating in post-election protests, applied to Minsk's Partyzanski district police department.

The former political prisoner asks permission to leave the country temporarily to undergo a treatment course, Radio Racyja reports.

He wants to visit three countries, including Poland, from April 1 to June 28. Martseleu cannot leave the town without permission of the corrections department during two years of probation. According to him, he needs a foreign trip for treatment. He attached doctor's certificates to his application.

“Why did I do it? After all, Iryna Khalip, who stood trial with me, was able to see her husband in Warsaw. I am happy that she managed to do it. If I have an opportunity to improve my health and see my friends, who live outside Belarus, it will be very good,” Martseleu says.

According to Syargei Martseleu, he noticed a tendency that the Belarusian authorities encourage opponents of the regime to leave the country. It happened so to Iryna Khalip, who received advice from the deputy head of the Minsk police not to return to Belarus. Martseleu stressed he is determined to return to the country if he is permitted to travel abroad.

A photo by Radio Svaboda