Blogger Siarhei Piatrukhin Contends Against Illegal Court Decision

Protest events against the battery factory are the constitutional right of Brest residents.

On October 4, the Leninski district court of Brest considered the materials of the administrative cases of blogger Siarhei Piatrukhin and an opponent of the battery factory construction, Kanstantsin Astapuk, tut.by reports.

Piatrukhin was found guilty under Part 3 of art. 23.34 of the Administrative Code (Violation of the order of organizing or holding mass events repeatedly during the year) and fined 45 basic units (1102.5 rubles), human rights activist Raman Kisliak told BelaPAN. Astapuk was charged under Part 1 of Art. 23.34 of the Administrative Code (Violation of the order of organizing or holding mass events), he was fined 14 basic units (343 rubles).

Piatrukhin and Astapuk were detained in Brest on September 30, when they were returning from Lenin Square, where more than 90 opponents of the battery factory construction had gathered on that day. They both were taken to the Leninski District Police Department, and, after drawing up protocols, were placed in a temporary detention facility until the trial.

On October 1, at the trial, Piatrukhin and Astapuk filed requests to get familiar with the materials of their cases and get lawyers. The judge granted the requests and appointed the trial for October 4, while Piatrukhin and Astapuk were released from custody.

“Piatrukhin and Astapuk believe that they were convicted illegally and will complain to the Brest Regional Court,” – Kisliak reports.

The battery plant is being built at the Airport industrial site in the Brest free economic zone by the LLC iPower. Residents of Brest and several villages of Brest region believe that the plant threatens their health.

On April 29, the Brest Against Lead rally, sanctioned by the authorities and attended by about two thousand people, took place in the Park of the Warriors-Internationalists on the outskirts of Brest.

Since February 25, every Sunday, opponents of the battery factory construction have been coming to Lenin Square in Brest.