Vitsebsk residents raise money for political prisoner Vaskovich

Yauhen Vaskovich, who serves a term of imprisonment in a correctional facility in Mahilou, has problems with health.

“It is our duty to support the political prisoner,” says initiator of the campaign Tatsiana Seviarynets, the coordinator of the organising committee to create the Belarusian Christian Democracy party in the Vitsebsk region.

Viasna human rights centre reports that voluntary donations were made during meetings of representatives of Vitsebsk democratic forces. According to Tatsiana Seviarynets, the young man, who was sentenced to such a long prison term, needs both moral and financial support.

“We know that Yauhen doesn't receive all our letters. He was sentenced to 7 years in Mahilou prison No. 4 and he has spent 247 days in a punishment cell. It damaged his health. He has problems with the back and stomach. We understand that his parents have financial problems. Parcels to prison are rather expensive. We will give his parents all the money we've raised. Yauhen's mother is going to visit him on February 5-6.”

Yauhen Vaskovich, a journalist, member of the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ) and activist of the organising committee to create the Belarusian Christian party (BCD), was arrested on January 17, 2011. On 18 May 2011, he was sentenced to 7 years in a medium security correctional facility for an attempt to put the doors of the KGB office in Babruisk on fire on 17 October 2010 (hooliganism, part 2 of article 339 of the Criminal Code) and inflicting damage to property on a large scale (part 3 of article 218 of the Criminal Code). Confinement conditions were toughened for him on October 12, 2011. Vaskovich was transferred from correctional facility No. 15 in Mahilou to prison No. 4 in Mahilou. He returned to correctional facility No. 15 in Mahilou on October 12, 2014.