Pavel Sapelka: Authorities have invented new way of repressions

Instead of preventive detentions and arrests ‘preventive talks’ may be held with activists every day.

This is how the former attorney, human rights activist Pavel Sapelka commented for the charter97.org web-site on the increased frequency of ‘preventive talks’ with a youth activist Pavel Vinahradau.

“The use of such measure as a preventive talk is provided for in the legislation, precisely – the law ‘On the basis for delinquency prevention activities’. And, unfortunately, the law does not specify the form and the length of the conversation. So of course, one may abuse the right, provided by the law”, - the lawyer noted.

The human rights activist believes that a preventive talk should last as long as it is necessary for it to reach its goal.

“So a talk must be a talk. But when it turns into a pointless keeping in the premises of internal affairs departments, then we may speak of arbitrary detention. This means that theoretically a person may not be detained preventively for days, but ‘talks’ may be had with such a person every day. As to an attorney then he/she may be present at any citizen’s visit to a state agency. It seems to me that an attorney’s role in this case only comes down to making a conclusion if the rights are violated or not of the person he/she represents”, - Sapelka highlighted.

We would remind that on 30 and 31 May a youth activist and former political prisoner Pavel Vinahradau was detained and spent almost a whole day at a police station. ‘Preventive talks’ were had with him. He links the detentions with the session of the Council of the heads of the governments of CIS member states, which took place in Belarusian capital. The authorities blocked traffic in Minsk’s city center because of the event.