Belarus Daily | 5 Apr

There have been 1,100 “political” arrests in March alone; over 1,500 officials signed a letter in favor of Lukashenko’s resignation

5 April 2021 | Voice of Belarus

Project 23.34 has prepared a report on the stories of 5,000 detainees 

During detention, physical violence was used against people in 26% of cases and psychological manipulation was used in 52% of cases.

The goal of Project 23.34 is to collect information on every single violation committed by the police, judges and other government officials since the beginning of the 2020 election campaign.

Over 1,500 officials signed a letter in favor of Lukashenko’s resignation

1,674 officials signed a letter demanding an end to violence, the release of political prisoners, the prosecution of the people in charge of the security forces and the Central Election Commission, and new presidential elections.

1,273 people indicated that they are current employees of state agencies (76%), and 401 identified themselves as former employees (24%).

The letter was signed by representatives of all major government agencies. The initiator of the letter, the Honest People project, originally hoped to collect more than 5,000 signatures. “However, direct pressure from the leadership, the security forces’ involvement in the repressions, as well as state propaganda create conditions in which it is virtually impossible to share one’s views openly,” admitted the organizers.

Both organizers of the closed exhibition about Belarusian doctors have been detained

The apartment of Natallia Trenina, an activist and one of the organizers of the exhibition about Belarusian doctors “The Machine Breathes, but I Don’t”, was searched. During the search, equipment was seized. Trenina herself was uncontactable for several hours. In the evening, it became known that she had been detained for 72 hours and is being held at Akrestsina.

In the afternoon, another organizer of this exhibition, Tanya Hatsura-Yavorska, and her husband, Uladzimir Yavorski, stopped all communication. At midnight, Uladzimir said that Tanya had been detained and was in one of the capital’s temporary detention facilities. He said that during the day, their apartment as well as the office had been searched and equipment had been confiscated.

The exhibition “The Machine Breathes, but I Don’t” was dedicated to Belarusian doctors and the challenges they have faced over the past year: the COVID-19 pandemic and the politicization of the healthcare system. The creators of the artworks presented at the exhibition are renowned photographers and artists. The most touching and tragic exhibits are notes written by people on mechanical ventilation.

The exhibition opened on 30 March. On 1 April, it was closed by order of the authorities.

The authorities blocked the bank accounts of the protest leaders placed on the “terrorist list”

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Belarusian bank accounts have been blocked. This happened after the authorities included Tsikhanouskaya on the list of individuals involved in terrorist actions. The only income that has been deposited in this account lately is a social pension for a disabled child under 18 in the amount of 223 rubles a month (about 70 euros).

Earlier, Pavel Latushka and Anton Matolka also announced the blocking of their accounts.

Founder of the Press Club Yuliya Slutskaya spoke about her life in prison

Media manager and founder of the Press Club Yuliya Slutskaya has been in prison since 22 December. She is accused of tax evasion.

Notes about her life in prison appeared on Yuliya’s Facebook page: 

1. A pen without a shaft is a good drinking straw. You can use it for drinking so as not to burn your lips on the mug. Because the liquid in an aluminum mug without a handle cools faster than the edges of the mug. It is very easy to get burned! And the girls have also developed an allergy on their lips from contact with aluminum. The main thing is to put this pen back together later; otherwise, it will be taken away during a search. 

2. A medical mask is a great sleeve for this mug. If you tie rubber bands around a mug, you will be able to hold the mug in your hands. Again, the main thing is not to forget to take it off.

3. A matchbox can be used as a spoon for pouring coffee and sugar (normal spoons are brought only for breakfast, lunch or dinner).

4. Instant porridge can be cooked in a soap dish and you can eat it with a toothbrush case (from one case, you get two spoons!).