BSUIR Student Sentenced to 114 Days of Arrest for Marches Expelled from University

Ian Solonovich will be released only in late February.

Ian Solonovich, BSUIR student and ex-employee of the KGB scientific and technical centre, who was tried eight times in November-December for participation in Sunday marches, was expelled from the university. On Saturday, his family received a notice. The document says that Ian is expelled from January 12, 2021, for "academic failure," tut.by.

Let us remind you that Ian Solonovich was detained on Sunday, November 1. It was the march to Kurapaty. The next day, the judge sentenced him to 12 days in jail. After this sentence, Ian was not released. The lawyer says that during the trial the young man told the court that he had taken to the streets since August and enumerated 15 episodes of protest.

- The deadline for administrative offences is two months. The court did not take into account protests in August and tried him under other episodes, says Volha Solonovich, mother of a young man.

- According to our estimates, he should have eight sessions in total.

Given all the trials, Ian will have to spend 114 days behind bars and be at large in late February. However, Dmitry Pigul, the young man's lawyer, believes that, given Ian's situation, he should have been behind bars for only 37 days. During the court hearings, the lawyer stated that the employee who conducted the administrative process should have drawn up seven or one protocol and submitted them to the court. As a result, the maximum term for Ian was 25 days. It did not include 12 days in jail the court imposed on him for the march on November 1.

For the third month, Ian has been on Okrestina. According to his mother Volha, the family has not received a single letter from the son. They receive some news due to his cellmates who are released. The former cellmate called the family two weeks ago. He told Ian was fine.

- On Saturday, we received a letter from the university. It says my son failed his winter session (3 tests, 5 exams and his term paper), so they expel him. I don't know what to do with this information yet. I should wait for Ian to come. When he is at large, he must decide whether wants to study at this university or not. Then we will take further steps.

Volha says they wrote an appeal to the Prosecutor's Office in Minsk. They asked to verify the legality of the decisions of Partisanski District Court of Minsk. It considered Ian's cases and his confinement conditions on Okrestina.

- The Prosecutor's Office submitted our appeal to Partisanski District Court of Minsk," says the interlocutor.

The reply says that the district court cannot verify the legality of the verdicts issued by the court.

"Your appeal also contains a request (demand) to check the TDF of the Main Department of Internal Affairs of Minsk City Executive Committee regarding the illegal deprivation of the right to daily walks, shower and the right to receive (send) correspondence. We explain that [...] these issues fall within the competence of the chief of the place of administrative detention or, on his behalf, the staff".

It should be noted that human rights activists recognized Ian as a political prisoner and demanded his immediate release.