There is no free country where you can encounter such outrageous cases of reprisals and prosecution of people for their civic stance. In January, 2022, the analytical service Numbeo published the rating of the safest countries in the world. Belarus got almost to the bottom of the list, taking the “honourable” 116th place between Bolivia and Zimbabwe. It should be mentioned, that in the mid-2020, Belarus was at the 17th place among 133 countries, being thus one of the safest countries in the world. Less than in a year and a half, our country rolled down the rating losing almost 100 points.

The “Round Dance Case” in Brest, that Our House is talking about this week, is another fact demonstrating why Belarus has ceased to be a safe country. 44 women and 86 men have already been convicted in the framework of the case.

Females were sentenced to:

• 72 years 3 months of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”);
• 10 years of restriction of liberty in an open-type correctional institution (“khimiya”);
• 1 year and 6 months of prison colony.

Males were sentenced to:

• 66 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”);
• 82 years of restriction of liberty in an open-type correctional institution (“khimiya”);
• 12 years and 9 months of prison colony.

In the first two materials of Our House about the “Round Dance Case” in Brest, you can read about what happened on September 13, 2020, that put so many people on a defendant’s bench, as well as the names of “judges” involved in that crime against their own nation. The situation with repressions and prosecution of active citizens is getting worse with each year passing. Such words as “days of detention”, “pre-trial detention facility”, “arrest” have been firmly placed in people’s everyday vocabulary. Many know by heart the numbers and wordings of the articles, under which those who dare to oppose the regime are being convicted. In the materials of Our House “Articles of political prisoners of Belarus: “Our House” collects and processes statistical information for international human rights organizations” you can get acquainted with the most “popular” articles of both the Criminal and the administrative Codes of Belarus, used against the activists since August, 2020.

The rubric “Defence and Solidarity” of Our House’s website provides numerous materials on the repressions that Belarusians are subjected to for their active civic stance. In the sections “Monitorings” you can find analytical materials on the pressing issues of Belarusians inside the country and abroad.

As of today, the most recent court hearing on the “Round Dance Case” in Brest took place on May 17, 2022. Those hearings did not involve imposing fines, but since August, 2020, it was the fines that became one of the items of income of the criminal regime of Lukashenka. Olga Karatch talked about that at the YouTube channel НАШ ДОМ ТВ.

TRIALS IN THE ROUND DANCE CASE OF BREST. PART 3

On October 25, 2021, the trial of the ninth and tenth groups took place – 15 people.

The defendants were accused under Part 1, Article 342 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus.

	Hanna Baran from Pruzhany 42 years old	1.5 years of prison colony.	Recognized political prisoner.
No photo available.	Aliaksandr Vialichka from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Vieranika Klimovich from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Volha Hachynskaya from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Sviatlana Jakimovich from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Kaciaryna Hancharova from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
	Uladzimir Hancharou from Brest 30 years old	2 years of prison colony.	Recognized political prisoner.
	Siarhei Yaroshkin from Brest 30 years old	2.5 years of restriction of liberty in an open-type correctional institution («khimiya»).	Recognized political prisoner.
No photo available.	Paviel Krauchuk from Brest	2.5 years of restriction of liberty in an open-type correctional institution («khimiya»).	No PP status
No photo available.	Valiancina Korsak from Brest	2.5 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Siarhei Lapko from Brest	2 years of restriction of liberty in an open-type correctional institution («khimiya»).	Recognized political prisoner.
No photo available.	Cimur Lompik from Brest	2 years of restriction of liberty in an open-type correctional institution («khimiya»).	No PP status
No photo available.	Aliaksiej Jakimovich from Brest	2 years of restriction of liberty in an open-type correctional institution («khimiya»).	No PP status
No photo available.	Tacciana Pauliuchyk from Brest	1 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Aliaksandr Pauliuchyk from Brest	1 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status

The judge passing the sentence: Katsiaryna Ramashka.

Prosecutors: Aliaksei Baranouski

The sentence was passed on November 15, 2021.

 

On October 25, 2021, the trial of the eleventh group of 12 people took place.

The defendants were accused under Part 1, Article 342 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus.

	Uladzimir Harbavets from Brest 31 years old	2 years of restriction of liberty in an open-type correctional institution («khimiya»).	Recognized political prisoner.
No photo available.	Katsiaryna Shpak from Brest	3 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Aliaksandr Badavets from Brest	2.5 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Viktar Kukharchuk from Brest	2.5 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	Recognized political prisoner.
No photo available.	Pavel Khamichuk from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Kiryl Darashchuk from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Barys Halanin from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Volha Fedarenka from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Anastasiya Zhukavets from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Dzmitry Kapylou from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Ihar Hrabinski from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Maryna Ushuykova from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status

The judge passing the sentence: Tatsiana Lauraniuk.

Prosecutors: Yahor Kronda.

The sentence was passed on December 17, 2021.

 

On March 16, 2022, the trial of the twelfth group of 2 people took place.

The defendants were accused under Part 1, Article 342 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus.

	Aliaksandr Antaniuk ex-investigator, from Brest 24 years old	1.5 years of prison colony.	Recognized political prisoner.
No photo available.	Ruslan Hachynski from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status

The judge passing the sentence: Maryna Skalkovich

The sentence was passed on March 16, 2022.

 

On April 19, 2022, the trial of the thirteenth group of 11 people took place.

The defendants were accused under Part 1, Article 342 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus.

	Ihar Liashkevich from Brest 37 years old	3 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	Recognized political prisoner.
No photo available.	Dzmitryi Neumiarzhytski from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Dzmitryi Shamshur from Brest	3 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Yuryi Klimavets from Brest	3 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
	Dziyana Vashchylina from Brest 41 years old	3 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	Recognized political prisoner.
No photo available.	Katsiaryna Yarameyeva from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Iryna Kuzmianchuk from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Yuliya Levaniuk from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Vital Brytsko from Brest	3 years of restriction of liberty in an open-type correctional institution («khimiya»).	No PP status
No photo available.	Liudmila Karabaniuk from Brest	3 years of restriction of liberty in an open-type correctional institution («khimiya»).	No PP status
No photo available.	Larysa Yakhimovich from Brest	2 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status

The judge passing the sentence: Liudmila Rubasheuskaya.

Prosecutors: Alena Sharko.

The sentence was passed on May 4, 2022.

 

On May 17, 2022, the trial of the fourteenth group of 2 people took place.

The defendants were accused under Part 1, Article 342 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus. The trial was in some ways special, as it ended in less than an hour, setting a record for the fastest sentencing.

No photo available.	Andrei Ulasau from Brest	3 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status
No photo available.	Yuliya Suvalka from Brest	3 years of restraint of liberty under home confinement (“domashnyaya khimiya”).	No PP status

The judge passing the sentence: Viktar Novik.

Prosecutor: Alena Tsikhanovich.

The sentence was passed on March 16, 2022.

The “Round Dance Case” is one of the most mass-scale criminal cases in Belarus launched against the protestants. As a human rights organization, Our House has met numerous people who survived reprisals and torture. The year 2020 broke and twisted hundreds of thousands of lives, but the level of the reprisals is still growing stronger. The regime does not seem to stop “tightening the screws” and using violence against the citizens who cannot make their peace with dictatorship, despotism and lawlessness. That is why we believe that registering facts, collecting and analysing information, as well as distributing it among the international human rights community and the whole world is one of the most important tasks of a human rights organization.