Syarhei Kavalenka’s mother: “My son can have a stroke”

Relatives of the activist of the Conservative Christian Party Belarusian Popular Front who was arrested for placing a national flag on the main Christmas tree of Vitsebsk, worry for his health.

The oppositionist’s mother, Lidziya Kavalenka, works as a street sweeper. She was on Victory Square of Vitsebsk in the moment when the white-red-white flag appeared on the tree. As Radio Svaboda informs, the woman is greatly worried that police would beat and humiliate her son.

“I fear they would beat him, and humiliate him,” the mother of the arrested says. “I have a great fear of that, as when he was arrested policemen were so angry, they closed the door in the car with such a bang… My heart gave a leap when he was detained and taken away”.

Lidziya Kavalenka says that on January 7 Syarhei was ill: he took medicines, as doctors diagnosed cerebrovascular disease. Now the mother of the arrested opposition activist worry that there is a threat of a blood-stroke or heart attack, as he is not given medicines under arrest. She plans to write an application for doctors to examine Syarhei Kavalenka and release if possible.

Syarhei Kavalenka’s 5-year-old son Valyantsin is waiting for him at home. The family decided not to tell anything to the boy, just to say that his father is absent on journey.

According to the family of the arrested oppositionist, Syarhei Kavalenka demanded the investigator and guards of the remand prison to speak only Belarusian to him.

As charter97.org website informed, at noon January 7, a national white-red-white was hung out at the top of the 35-metres-high Christmas tree set up on Victory square in Vitsebsk. Police cordoned off the tree and called for emergency service. The flag was removed with the help of a fire truck before eyes of passers-by. A dozen of police cars and special vehicles drove to the square, even the regional police command visited the site. Policemen began to check IDs and search people on the square.

As it became known later, activist of CCP BPF Syarhei Kavalenka was detained for the white-red-white flag. A case on charges relating Article 339 Part 2 of the Criminal Code (repeated hooliganism, or committed by a group of persons, or connected with committing less serious bodily harm) has been opened against him. He faces up to 6 years of imprisonment under this article. On January 10 the prosecutor of Vitsebsk decided to place him in the remand prison for 2 months.

It should be noted that there are other political prisoners in Belarusian prisons: businessmen from Vaukavysk Mikalai Autukhovich and Uladzimir Asipenka, a Young Front activist Artsyom Dubski.