Zmitser Bandarenka: “Europe is killing us by its greediness”

The political prisoner tells about humiliating treatment in the KGB remand prison and gives an estimate the consequences of the actions of the European Union towards Lukashenka’s regime.

On July 18 the coordinator of “European Belarus” Zmitser Bandarenka met with his wife in the remand prison of the Interior Affairs Ministry. By a lucky accident, during the meeting Zmitser Bandarenka could see the presidential candidate Andrei Sannikov for the first time in 8 months of imprisonment. Zmitser was Sannikov’s agent during the election. It happened so that Andrei Sannikov had a meeting with his wife Iryna Khalip on the same day. Meetings are allowed after consideration of cassational appeals against the verdict (for the politicians they took place on the same day, July 15; the verdicts were upheld), and before transfer to the penal colony. The wives of the both politicians came to the remand prison in Valadarski Street at the same time, and when Sannikov and Bandarenka were conducted to booths for meetings, they could see each other and even exchange a few words.

Zmitser Bandarenka, who was placed to the Republican Prison Hospital because of a serious spinal column disease, told his wife about outrageous incarceration conditions in the KGB remand prison, which provoked inflammation of intervertebral hernia, spinal nerve entrapments, a leg paresis and a threat of immobilization of the other leg.

“Zmitser said that they are trying to make political prisoners disabled persons. The aim of the authorities is to destroy them morally and physically. As said by him, for the first time he asked to provide qualified medical assistance to him in late February, back in the KGB remand prison, and he was rendered medical assistance first on June 22, in the Interior Affairs Ministry’s remand prison. He lost his health in the first two month in the KGB prison, when he was standing in a stretch-out position for an hour, and even for two hours. For the whole period in the KGB prison he did not have a sleeping berth, and he was sleeping on planks on the cold floor. There was no toilet in the cell, and it was a regular torture,” the wife of the political prisoner told to charter97.org website.

“When Zmitser told to the guards in the KGB prison that he is almost a disabled person, they answered: “You are not a disabled person still!” Volha Bandarenka quotes her husband.

Now, when Zmitser Bandarenka is kept in the Republican Prison Hospital, which is situated at the territory of the Interior Affairs Ministry’s remand prison, his situation is not much better. Bandarenka was transferred to a cell where persons with HIV and hepаtitis C are kept. Doctors have not even warned the political prisoner or told about measures to prevent catching an infection.

Bandarenka does not know still the exact date of his spinal column operation, but he says that it must happen in the near future, we remind that the administration of the remand prison of the Interior Affairs Ministry, said in a form of an ultimatum that the political prisoner must either go to the penal colony or to undergo operation. He was denied a consultation of a neurosurgeon.

Zmitser Bandarenka has also expressed concerns that while he is receiving independent newspapers in the remand prison, he sees almost no articles about the people who had been incarcerated for the protest rally on December 19, 2010 held against rigged election results.

“Zmitser reads “Narodnaya Volya”, “Nasha Niva”, “Belorusy i rynok”, “Belgazeta”, and he was surprised that much more articles are published about those who are at large, then about those who are in prison now and those lives are really menaced,” Volha Bandarenka said.

Indeed, today independent Belarusian newspapers are writing more about Uladzimir Nyaklyaeu, Andrei Dzmitryeu or Vital Rymasheuski, than about Andrei Sannikov, Zmitser Bandarenka and other prisoners of conscience. “And it is so important in prison when newspapers write about political prisoners. Everyone reads independent newspapers there. And it gives a certain defence and which is more important, supports the spirits,” Volha Bandarenka said.

The coordinator of “European Belarus” has also commented on the actions of the European Union against the dictatorial regime of Lukashenka.

“European greed is bringing Belarus to ruin. Real economic sanctions should be imposed against Belarus. Now duties on Belarusian potassium fertilizers have been abolished. The European Union is the main trade partner of the Belarusian dictatorship today. It happens so that on the one hand they are making statements of protest, and on the other hand, they are in fact killing political prisoners by their greed,” Volha Bandarenka quoted the words of her husband.

Zmitser Bandarenka was arrested on December 19, 2010 at night after the peaceful protest rally against rigged presidential election results was disbanded. During the so-called investigation charges against the “European Belarus” coordinator were changed for “organizing and preparation of actions grossly violating public order, or active participation in them” (Article 342 Part 1 of the Criminal Code). The politician was sentenced to 2 years of standard regime penal colony. Zmitser Bandarenka is the only person sentenced to deprivation of liberty for the events of December 19 under this article. All other persons for whom charges had been changed, have been sentenced to conditional terms.