Police arrest university staff in Viciebsk region

May 23, BPN. Police have arrested a leading instructor and two other employees of Połack State University, Viciebsk region, a source has told BPN.

Alena Chramcova, who teaches at the department of world literature and foreign languages, was accused of subscribing to Belarus Golovnogo Mozga, an opposition Telegram channel that authorities consider extremist. She was also declared a witness in a criminal case and had her equipment seized, said the source speaking on the condition of anonymity.

The other two arrestees were Viktar Čaraŭko, an associate professor of history and tourism with a PHD, and Lidzija Zujeva, a repository worker.

The arrests were part of a crackdown on dissent that continues in Belarus following a disputed presidential election that sparked mass protests in 2020. Several other university and hospital employees have been detained or sentenced to jail terms in recent weeks in Połack and the nearby city of Navapołack.