Belarus: Released political prisoner claimed he was tortured

18 Aug 11 | Index Index, minipost

Vladimir Yaromenok (Владимир Еременок, Уладзімер Яроменак), a Belarusian political prisoner released on 13 August following President Alexander Lukashenko’s pardoning of nine individuals convicted for the December 2010 protests in Minsk has said he was tortured while in a KGB detention unit. Yaromenok, 20, was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment in a colony with the highest security regime in May for having helped organise and participate in mass riots. He served 15-day and seven-day terms at two separate prisons before being referred to a KGB detention unit.

 

Belarus: President pardons nine convicted for December protests

12 Aug 11 | Index Index

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has pardoned nine of the 41 people convicted for taking part in the December 19 protests that followed his higly disputed re-election. RFE/RL’s Belarus Service reported that the nine freed had requested an amnesty, admitted taking part in the demonstrations, and pledged not to engage in such activities again. Of the nine amnestied, four have been named as Dimitry Drozd, Artem Gribkov, Serguey Kazakov and Andrei Protasenya. Two more who are thought to have been released have been named as Vladimir Loban and Alexander Klafkovsky, while the names of the remaining three remain unknown.
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