Prosecutor asks for prison terms for opposition party leaders

November 2, BPN. The state prosecutor has requested prison terms ranging from one to two and a half years for United Civic Party (UCP) leaders, the Viasna Human Rights Center reported.

UCP Chair Mikałaj Kazloŭ, former Deputy Chair Antanina Kavalova, and UCP Minsk branch head Aksana Alaksiejeva, who are on trial at the Pieršamajski District Court in Minsk, are accused of participating in protests.

The verdict is scheduled to be delivered at 10:50 a.m. on November 3.

Police arrested the UCP leaders on July 27. Siarhiej Pasko, head of the Investigative Committee in Minsk, said that Kazłoŭ “controlled a radical crowd, gave orders to protesters, and urged them to block the traffic” allegedly following orders from so-called “supervisors.”

In March 2022, authorities released Kazłoŭ after he had served a three-month jail sentence for refusing to pledge not to disclose the details of his questioning as a witness in a criminal case against former presidential candidate Sviatłana Cichanoŭskaja.