{"id":43486,"date":"2022-08-26T11:33:49","date_gmt":"2022-08-26T08:33:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/api.pozirk.online\/articles\/political-crackdown-roundup-august-25\/"},"modified":"2026-02-24T20:29:13","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T20:29:13","slug":"political-crackdown-roundup-august-25","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/43486\/","title":{"rendered":"Political crackdown roundup: August 25"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b>August 26, <span>BPN.<\/span><\/b> New <b>arrests<\/b>&nbsp;were reported on August 25.<\/p>\n<p>The interior ministry\u2019s organized crime unit GUBOPiK arrested a 31-year-old Minsk resident who was allegedly planning to fight for Ukraine. He also \u201ctook an active part\u201d in the Minsk unrest in September 2020, said the Investigative Committee.<\/p>\n<p> Siarhei Niki\u0441iuk, a 32-year-old Brest musician, was arrested for&nbsp;allegedly posting&nbsp;Nazi symbols on social media, and sending&nbsp;his ballot to \u201cextremist channels\u201d during the constitutional referendum on February 27. A criminal case has been opened for allegedly&nbsp;insulting Alaksandr \u0141uka\u0161enka, participating in an extremist formation and facilitating extremist activities, the Viasna Human Rights Center reported.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p> Activist and dissident Barys Chamajda, who intended to attend&nbsp;the trial of journalist Ta\u0107ciana Matviejeva, was arrested in a district court in Viciebsk, Viasna said.<\/p>\n<p> Mika\u0142aj Mardovi\u010d, a 36-year-old employee of the Grodnozhilstroy company, was arrested for alleged&nbsp;participation&nbsp;in the 2020 protests, urging&nbsp;colleagues to go on strike and disseminating&nbsp;information about protests, Viasna reported.<\/p>\n<p> <b>Administrative proceedings<\/b><\/p>\n<p> Viciebsk journalist Matviejeva was sentenced to eight days in jail. The decision was made by the regional center\u2019s district court. Judge U\u0142adzimir Caryka\u016d ruled that a picture with a white-red-white flag on Matviejeva\u2019s Facebook page and a line from Janka Kupa\u0142a\u2019s poem \u201cTo Be Called Human\u201d amounted to an unauthorized picket.<\/p>\n<p> A district court in Minsk banned 75-year-old Nina Bahinskaja from traveling abroad, visiting casinos and gambling. On August 8, the activist was banned from hunting, driving cars and small boats. Telecom operators are not allowed to provide her with internet, television and mobile communication services. All because she hasn\u2019t paid a 1,600 rubels (some $630) fine for an unauthorized Freedom Day protest, Viasna reported.<\/p>\n<p> <b>Criminal proceedings<\/b><\/p>\n<p> A district court in Minsk rejected Eduard Babaryka\u2019s appeal&nbsp;against the extension of&nbsp;his detention at the&nbsp;KGB detention center&nbsp;until September 14, Viasna reported. He is the son of a former banker and presidential hopeful, Viktar Babaryka.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p> The Homiel Regional Court sentenced 31-year-old Illa Holca\u016d to 18 months in prison for \u201cinciting hatred.\u201d He was arrested in February. In October 2021, Holca\u016d was fined 290 rubels for \u201cdisseminating extremist content\u201d and defying police orders, according to Viasna.<\/p>\n<p> <b>Religious persecution<\/b><\/p>\n<p> Police warned D\u017amitryj Pad\u0142obka, a&nbsp;pastor of the Living Faith Church of Full Gospel Christians in Homiel, that he should either follow the law on mass events, such as baptism ceremonies, or face criminal charges. In July, the pastor was fined 640 rubels for performing baptism without an authorization,&nbsp;<span>Flagshtok <\/span>reported.<\/p>\n<p> <b>Torture<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Viasna&nbsp;head Ale\u015b Bialacki, held in a pre-trial detention facility in Minsk, has been locked up in a \u201cspecial corridor\u201d \u2013 a basement with poor conditions. He endures heavy restrictions on correspondence. He and other Viasna leaders, Valancin Stefanovi\u010d and U\u0142adzimir \u0141abkovi\u010d, were arrested on July 14, 2021. The investigation into the case has been extended until October 14, the human rights watchdog said.<\/p>\n<p> <b>Release<\/b><\/p>\n<p> Illa Silanko\u016d has been freed after serving a sentence of 18 months of restricted freedom for insulting Alaksandr \u0141uka\u0161enka. He was accused of scattering at least 17 leaflets with the picture of \u0141uka\u0161enka and a message humiliating his \u201chonor and dignity,\u201d Viasna reported.<\/p>\n<p>Human rights groups identified 1,307 political prisoners in Belarus in&nbsp;the morning of August 26 (+8 in the past 24 hours).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>August 26, BPN. New arrests&nbsp;were reported on August 25. The interior ministry\u2019s organized crime unit GUBOPiK arrested a 31-year-old Minsk resident who was allegedly planning to fight for Ukraine. He also \u201ctook an active part\u201d in the Minsk unrest in September 2020, said the Investigative Committee. Siarhei Niki\u0441iuk, a 32-year-old Brest musician, was arrested for&nbsp;allegedly [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":75,"featured_media":0,"template":"","rubric":[16],"class_list":["post-43486","articles","type-articles","status-publish","hentry","rubric-politics"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Political crackdown roundup: August 25 | Pozirk<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"August 26, BPN. New arrests&nbsp;were reported on August 25. 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