EVGENY AFNAGEL SENTENCED TO 10 DAYS ARREST, GOES ON HUNGER-STRIKE :: Charter'97 :: News

10 days of arrest – such a verdict was voiced by the judge of the central district court of Minsk Tatiana Pavluchuk against the ZUBR movement activist Evgeny Afnagel for his part in the protest against Belarus’ incorporation by Russia, held by ZUBR last Tuesday in Minsk. As a sign of protest Evgeny Afnagel declared a hunger-strike right in the courtroom. “I stood for the independence of Belarus! That’s my duty as of a citizen of my country!” – said the young patriot, after which police grabbed him and threw into their van. Afnagel was in no time delivered to the Okrestina jail. This was the forth accusatory sentence, passed by judge Pavluchuk against the participants of the anti-integration actions – on August 19 Tatiana Pavluchuk sentenced three ZUBR activists to five and ten days of arrest for picketing the Russian embassy.

Police was taken aback by the action, carried out by ZUBR on August 20 near the monument to the Belarusian patriot Marat Kazei. Not even one police patrol was in the vicinity of the place. The official reaction to what they called “unsanctioned picketing” (for which they sued Afnagel), appeared not until the event got into the spotlight of Russian media attention. As you know, the young boys and girls were shown as tearing Putin’s portraits and shouting mottoes in support of the Belarusian independence.

Evgeny Afnagel was detained in the morning of August 23 at his house. Today one of the witnesses for the prosecution – a law-enforcer – said that he filed the detention protocol on the basis of video-materials, seized at the offices of Russian TV companies in Minsk. As far as ZUBR activist demanded to be assigned a lawyer, the court hearings were put off to August 27. At today’s session judge Pavluchuk declined all petitions, submitted by defense.