{"id":76384,"date":"2024-03-29T14:32:48","date_gmt":"2024-03-29T11:32:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/76384\/"},"modified":"2026-03-10T12:05:06","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T12:05:06","slug":"brest-human-rights-volunteer-beaten-during-arrest-reports","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/76384\/","title":{"rendered":"Brest-based rights volunteer beaten during arrest \u2013 reports \u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n\n Vital \u010copik\r\n\r\n\n <\/div>\n \n
\n (Viasna Human Rights Center)<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

March 29, Pozirk<\/em>.<\/strong> Vital \u010copik, 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On March 28, Alaksandar \u0141a\u016drukovi\u010d of the interior ministry\u2019s organized crime unit said that police \u201cstopped activities\u201d of several persons in Brest, Baranavi\u010dy and Pinsk with alleged links to Viasna, which Belarusian authorities branded an “extremist” group in 2023.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A 40-year-old Brest man, presumably \u010copik, was recording names of witnesses, judges and prosecutors and passed that information to opposition online media outlets for publication, according to the official.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Investigative Committee filed criminal charges of facilitating extremism and placed the suspect in a pre-trial detention center, \u0141a\u016drukovi\u010d said. He may face up to seven years in prison if convicted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The official added that investigators are considering bringing charges against other suspected trial observers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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