Amnesty International Demands Investigation Into Information About Torturing Mikalai Dziadok

The life of the political prisoner is in danger.

On December 24, Amnesty International addressed to the Belarusian authorities with the demand to take urgent measures to investigate the information about threats to the life and health of anarchist Mikalai Dziadok, arrested more than a month ago.

Moreover, the organization demands to investigate into violations of his right to have access to his lawyer, as well as to receive and send correspondence, naviny.media reports.

As noted in the Amnesty International press release, earlier, Aliaksandr Dziadok, the father of Mikalai Dziadok arrested under Article 342 of the Criminal Code (organization and preparation of actions seriously violating public order), said that relatives of one of the detainees had received information that the prisoners "create conditions for Mikalai Dziadok so that he would die". They do not allow a lawyer to see him, and no correspondence is received from him.

"We ask you to take immediately all measures within your competence to check the information about threats to Mikalai Dziadok's life and health, about the use of torture, conditions of his detention, violation of his rights to have access to a lawyer, receive and send correspondence and ensure restoration of his rights," - the letter of Amnesty International addressed to Minsk city prosecutor Aleh Laurukhin and head of the Department of Corrections of the Interior Ministry of Belarus Aleh Matkin reads.

32-year-old Minsk resident Mikalai Dziadok was detained on November 12 by police officers of the Main Department for Combating Organized Crime in the village of Sasnovy of Asipovichy district.

According to the Interior Ministry, foreign bank cards and large sums of money in different currencies "to finance the protesters," as well as "glass bottles of fuel and lubricants (Molotov cocktails), flyers and stickers" were found at the blogger's home.

Dziadok's father reported that the activist was severely beaten during his detention and tortured with tear gas during interrogation. The statement about torture was submitted to the Investigative Committee and is currently under consideration.

Mikalai Dziadok is a former political prisoner. He was taken into custody in September 2010, and in May 2011 he was sentenced to four and a half years under Part 2 Article 339 of the Criminal Code (malicious hooliganism).