Brest-based rights volunteer beaten during arrest – reports

March 29, Pozirk. Vital Čopik, arrested in Brest for attending public court hearings in criminal cases linked to the persecution of the opposition, was taken to hospital with signs of severe beatings and suspected liver damage, the Viasna Human Rights Center reports.
On March 28, Alaksandar Łaŭrukovič of the interior ministry’s organized crime unit said that police “stopped activities” of several persons in Brest, Baranavičy and Pinsk with alleged links to Viasna, which Belarusian authorities branded an “extremist” group in 2023.
A 40-year-old Brest man, presumably Čopik, was recording names of witnesses, judges and prosecutors and passed that information to opposition online media outlets for publication, according to the official.
The Investigative Committee filed criminal charges of facilitating extremism and placed the suspect in a pre-trial detention center, Łaŭrukovič said. He may face up to seven years in prison if convicted.
The official added that investigators are considering bringing charges against other suspected trial observers.
Police crack down on rights volunteers
- PoliticsŁukašenka orders coins to commemorate All-Belarusian People’s AssemblyThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- EconomyCentral bank cuts estimated values of standard riskThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- EconomyBelarus to raise labor pensions on September 1The material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics, SecurityUkraine, Russia release 10 return prisoners each in BelarusThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Society
- SecurityBelarus testing artillery, command-chain readiness using lessons from Ukraine, IranThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- EconomyŁukašenka notes plunge in trade with Russia's Arkhangelsk provinceThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Economy, SocietyLithuania intercepts two drones carrying Belarusian cigarettesThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Economy
- Belarusians stand with Ukraine, Cichanoŭskaja saysThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsŁukašenka greets Ukrainians on Independence Day, predicts restoration of “friendly bonds”The material is available only to POZIRK+
- EconomyEDB says Belarus’ economic growth this year may exceed its forecastThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- SocietyForest fire spreads from Ukraine into BelarusThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics, SecurityBelarusian troops practice assault operations in joint exercise in ChinaThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- SocietyPolice arrest suspected jewelry store robberThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics
- Society
- Politics, Society
- PoliticsInstances of political persecution reported on August 21The material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsBelarus declares Polish Catholic website extremist contentThe material is available only to POZIRK+



