Provocation against Union of Poles in Belarus

Fake obscene photos were planted to mail boxes of Andzelika Borys' neighbours.

The photographs appeared in the mailboxes of the block of flats where the chairperson of the officially unrecognized Union of Poles in Belarus lives, on March 3. Andzelika Borys was depicted on the picture edited in Photoshop.

As the Charter’87 press-centre was told by an activist of the Union of Poles, a journalist Andrzej Poczobut, this humiliating provocation has been made to smear the image of the leader of the organisation.

“These were black and white photos printed out at a printer, and their editing in Photoshop is obvious,” Poczobut said. “Creators of these photos were not event trying to make these images look natural. There was a different aim, to dishonour Andzelika Borys in the eyes of her neighbours. Photos were thrown to mailboxes. Certainly, neighbours called up police. Andzelika herself was out of town at that moment”.

According to the journalist, this provocation has been carried out by Belarusian special services.

“Those who disseminate these photographs wanted to crush, humiliate the person,” Andrzej Poczobut said. “We believe that Belarusian special services are standing behind this provocation. The door of Andzelika’s flat was many times covered with writings, insulting words were written on the walls of her house. Such provocations are held not only against the leader of the Union of Poles. A sewing awl was placed into the lock of the chairman of the city branch of the Union of Poles in Belarus. My door upholstery was cut”.

Andrzej Poczobut believes that criminals won’t be found.

“We believe that it was a provocation by secret service held right in the run-up of our congress,” the journalist said.

As we have informed, the 7th congress of the independent Union of Poles in Belarus is to take place on March 14-15. Representatives of the Foreign Ministry of Poland and of Polish Sejm are to attend the congress. Participants of the congress are to hold elections of the leadership of the congress and to sum up the results of the organisation’s work over the last four years.

As the Charter’97 press-centre informed earlier, on March 3 Hrodna policemen drew a report about an administrative violation by Andrzej Poczobut, who is also a journalist of the Polish newspaper “Gazeta Wyborcza”. He is charged with taking an active part in the meeting held on January 17 near the building of the pro-regime Union of Poles in Belarus.

About a hundred of people mostly of Polish origin gathered on that day trying to enter the Polish House, but they were stopped by policemen and KGB men.

Besides, in the beginning of February Andrzej Poczobut was kept on a check-point of Kamenny Loh on his way back from a business trip from Lithuania. Without any explanations the journalist was stopped for a personal search.

Not long ago the outer door of the flat in Hrodna, belonging to Andrzej Poczobut, was cut by unknown. Besides, as said by Andrzej Poczobut, an unknown man was calling to his 8-year-old daughter several times intimidating her.