Prisoner of conscience Dubski fined for political graffiti

The Court of Asipovichy punished the “Young Front” activist by a fine of 25 basic units.

The youth activist was detained on May 10. He was accused of drawing graffiti “Freedom to Autukhovich!” on the walls of an administrative building. The case was sent to the administrative commission of the Asipovichy district executive committee, which had a session today, “Nasha Niva” writes.

The members of the commission agreed with accusations presented by militia officers and punished Artsyom Dubski by a fine of 875 thousand Belarusian rubles.

Artsyom Dubski is a participant of the Process of 14. He was in custody since February 2009. Dubski was arrested when he was returning to Belarus from Ukraine. The youth activist was charged with violation of order of serving punishment. On April 15, he was released from a detention center in Babruisk on his own recognizance. A criminal case against Artsyom Dubski for his participation in a protest rally of entrepreneurs hasn’t been closed.

The Case of 14 is a criminal case under article 342 of the Criminal Code of Belarus instigated against participants of a peaceful protest rally of entrepreneurs held in Minsk on January 10, 2008.

The Tsentralny district court sentenced youth activist Andrei Kim to 1.5 years in penal colony for participation in this rally. Kim was released in August 2008. Activist of the civil campaign “European Belarus” Alyaksandr Barazenka was sentenced to a year of restraint of liberty without sending him to a correction facility; he was in remand jail since October 27 to trial on December 9, 2008. The rest participants of the Process of 14 – Artsyom Dubski, Alyaksei Bondar, Mikhail Kryvau, Mikhail Pashkevich, Alyaksandr Straltsou, Alyaksandr Charnyshou, Tatsyana Tsishkevich, Mikhail Subach, and Pavel Vinahradau – got 2 years of restraint of liberty without sending them to correction facilities. Minor Maksim Dashuk was sentenced to 1.5 years of restraint of liberty.

Amnesty International human rights watchdog recognized participants of the Process of 14 prisoners of conscience in 2009.