Alyaksandr Barazenka: “Actions of authorities towards Autukhovich could be as murder bid”

A person involved in the “Process of Fourteen”, an activist of the civil campaign “European Belarus” Alyaksandr Barazenka has joined the hunger strike of solidarity with political prisoners.

As stated by Alyaksandr Barazenka in an interview to the press-centre of the Charter’97, he started the hunger strike in Pinsk on May 11.

“First of all, I announced a hunger strike to show support to political prisoners, and especially to Mikalay Autukhovich who is on hunger strike for about a month,” Alyaksandr Barazenka stated. “I want to express solidarity with those who are in prisons on political grounds today. The authorities are keeping under observation Autukhovich’s hunger strike, but do nothing. Thus, they are simply trying to finish him. Autukhovich is haunting them. The actions of the authorities could be perceived even as a murder bid”.

Alyaksandr Barazenka states that liberalization does not take place in Belarus, and the regime still disregard human rights. Even despite of the fact that on May 12 the international human rights organisation Amnesty International recognized participants of the Process of Fourteen Prisoners of Conscience, Barazenka is not sure that the attitude to political opponents would change in Belarus.

“No liberalization is taking place in Belarus. Human rights are violated as before,” Barazenka says. “Now the law on amnesty has been adopted. I do not think that political prisoners would be included into the amnesty law. I haven’t felt changes after persons involved in the Process of Fourteen have been recognized as Prisoners of Conscience. Unfortunately, nothing changes in our country because of that. The regime does not care at all about the world public opinion”.

On May 4, a number of political and public figures of Belarus went on indefinite hunger strike to support detained entrepreneurs from Vaukavysk, kept in pre-trial detention center #1 in Minsk. 29 persons have already joined the hunger strike in Belarus.

The participants of the hunger strike demand to free the arrested leader of entrepreneurs Mikalai Autukhovich, Yury Lyavonau, and Uladzimir Asipenka from charges, release them immediately, rehabilitate all political prisoners in the country, and stop politically motivated persecuting of people.