New president of Trade Unions Federation’s university started with political purges

A 4-year student of the Belarusian university of the Federation of Trade Unions, the International university of Labour and Social Relations “MITSO”, Valyantsin Fyadzyuk was expelled for participation in one of the silent protests in Salihorsk.

Such an order was signed on October 7 by the new president of the university Stanislau Knyazeu, the human rights centre Vyasna informs.

The formal pretext mentioned in the order consists of three parts: a reprimand for absence from classes, violation of hostel rules and petty hooliganism.

It is known that the document reprimanding the student was issued a year ago, on October 7, 2010. Minor violations of the accommodation rules also took place in October 2010. However, even for gross violations of these rules one can face expulsion from the hostel, not expulsion from the university. However, despite of the great number of people who wish to have a bed in a Minsk hostel, no one expelled the young man before.

The petty hooliganism should be dwelled upon in more detail. Valyantsin Fyadzyuk’s detention on Wednesday, June 29, 2011 in the central square of Salihorsk during one of the silent protest rallies is meant by that. On that day the student of the Minsk university from Salihorsk together with Shyla family was taken to the police department of Salihorsk. As a result, almost the whole family of oppositionists was thrown behind the bars, and Valyantsin was fined 5 basic units.

The then-president of the MITSO university was satisfied with the written explanations of the student on the accident. And the new president, who became the head of the university on September 3, decided to bring up the matter again. Notably, the administration of the university did not conceal the information that the detention during the silent protest rally in Salihorsk was the reason for expulsion of the young man. As said by Valyantsin Fyadzyuk, he is going to challenge this decision in court soon.

The picture would not be complete however without recalling several facts from the biography of the new president of the MITSO. Stanislau Knyazeu, a native of Novosibirsk, had graduated from the KGB academy, a military academy, the Security academy. Major-general. He was in charge of the Military Counter-Intelligence division of the KGB of Belarus, the Institute of National Security of Belarus. IN early 2000ies he was a deputy Secretary of State of the Security Council of Belarus, first deputy head of the presidential administration (he followed Uladzimir Zamyatalin at this position). Since 2003 he was the head of the Academy of Public Administration under the aegis of the president of Belarus.