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CASE #399
Date
08 / 11 / 2020
City
Minsk
Description

A group of plainclothes officers conducted brutal detention of an elderly. They forced him to the ground. As a result, the victim was injured his head and started bleeding. The victim screamed for help and an explanation of why the officers assaulted him. Bystanders urged the perpetrators to stop hurting the victim.

Perpetrators
  • GUBOPiK (ГУБАЗіК / ГУБОПиК)
  • Militsiya of the Republic of Belarus (regular police of Belarus)
  • Plain clothed police officers
  • Undefined
Type of violation
  • Arbitrary or unlawful arrest and/or detention
  • Cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
  • Slapping, kicking or punching
  • Use of excessive force
International classification of violations
  • Prohibition of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment
  • Right to freedom of peaceful assembly
  • Right to liberty and security of person
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CASE #398
Date
13 / 09 / 2020
City
Hrodna / Hrodno
Description

A group of equipped OMON officers conducted detentions of civilians grieving over the fraudulent election. They demand the police to cease brutality against civilians. Nonetheless, OMON continued conducting detentions.

Perpetrators
  • Plain clothed police officers
  • Special Purpose Police Unit OMON
  • Undefined
Type of violation
  • Arbitrary or unlawful arrest and/or detention
  • Slapping, kicking or punching
  • Use of excessive force
International classification of violations
  • Right to freedom of opinion and expression
  • Right to freedom of peaceful assembly
  • Right to liberty and security of person
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CASE #397
Date
09 / 08 / 2020
City
Minsk
Description

The riot police and a male in a khaki uniform broke into the shopping centre. They held their truncheons out and made customers lie down on the floor. The police proceeded into the store and started bringing its customers out. They beat detainees up, dragged them along the floor, dragged them by the hair, slapped, kicked, and physically abused otherwise. The police would repeatedly come back for more people.

Perpetrators
  • Special Purpose Police Unit OMON
Type of violation
  • Abduction
  • Arbitrary or unlawful arrest and/or detention
  • Beating
  • Blows with batons and/or truncheons
  • Cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
  • Physical abuse
  • Physical assaults (other)
  • Slapping, kicking or punching
  • Threats (not including death threats)
  • Use of excessive force
International classification of violations
  • Prohibition of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment
  • Right to liberty and security of person
  • Right to Life
  • Right to protection of property
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CASE #396
Date
15 / 10 / 2020
City
Minsk
Description

CNN video shows a hallway full of detainees – primarily males – aligned along the wall with arms tied behind. They faced the wall. Some of the detainees bleed or suffered other injuries/wounds. The reporter comments that detainees were beaten. There was a motionless teenager in post-epileptic seizures condition laying on the floor as witnesses told CNN. The police ignored his seizures, kicked the body occasionally to learn the gender.

Perpetrators
  • Detention Centre Personnel
  • Undefined
Type of violation
  • Arbitrary or unlawful arrest and/or detention
  • Beating
  • Cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
  • Denial of appropriate conditions of detention
  • Denial of legal rights of arrested persons
  • Deprivation of medical attention
  • Physical assaults (other)
International classification of violations
  • Prohibition of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment
  • Right to liberty and security of person
  • Violation of rights of detained or imprisoned persons
  • Violations of rights of accused persons
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CASE #395
Date
13 / 09 / 2020
City
Minsk
Description

#1: A van stopped next to a passenger car. OMON agents jumped out and started crashing the driver’s window with truncheons. The passengers (one of whom with a white-red flag) rushed to leave the car. OMON and a traffic police officer started detentions. They forced the victims to the ground. They also detained two female bystanders who seemed to be merely passing by. The other traffic police officer was in front of the attacked car. He pointed a gun at the windshield and shot.

Perpetrators
  • Plain clothed police officers
  • Special Purpose Police Unit OMON
  • Traffic Police (ГАИ)
Type of violation
  • Arbitrary or unlawful arrest and/or detention
  • Beating
  • Blows with batons and/or truncheons
  • Cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
  • Damage to property
  • Physical assaults (other)
  • Slapping, kicking or punching
  • Threats against the victim (death threats)
  • Use of excessive force
  • Use of stun grenades (close proximity)
International classification of violations
  • Prohibition of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment
  • Right to freedom of opinion and expression
  • Right to liberty and security of person
  • Right to Life
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CASE #394
Date
27 / 03 / 2021
City
Minsk
Description

Several OMON officers kicked and hit two male civilians. One of whom refused to comply. Female bystanders rushed to help the detainee out. Off-screen voice commented that he managed to escape.

Perpetrators
  • Special Purpose Police Unit OMON
Type of violation
  • Arbitrary or unlawful arrest and/or detention
  • Beating
  • Cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
  • Slapping, kicking or punching
  • Use of excessive force
International classification of violations
  • Prohibition of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment
  • Right to liberty and security of person
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CASE #393
Date
10 / 08 / 2020
City
Žodzina / Zhodino
Description

Kim Mazur and his friends were detained by officers and later transferred from their vehicle to another one with OMON without license plate numbers. In the precinct office, he was beaten up, deprived of water and using a toilet. He witnessed officers beating up whoever detainees would come to hand and humiliating them otherwise. At Zhodina detention centre, he has beaten again. The investigative committee was reluctant to accept Kim’s complaint despite his injuries and testimony.

Perpetrators
  • Detention Centre Personnel
  • Special Purpose Police Unit OMON
  • Undefined
Type of violation
  • Arbitrary or unlawful arrest and/or detention
  • Beating
  • Cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
  • Denial of appropriate conditions of detention
  • Denial of legal rights of arrested persons
  • Deprivation of food and/or water
  • Use of excessive force
International classification of violations
  • Prohibition of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment
  • Right to fair trial (procedural violations)
  • Right to liberty and security of person
  • Violation of rights of detained or imprisoned persons
  • Violations of rights of accused persons
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CASE #392
Date
22 / 11 / 2020
City
Minsk
Description

Daytime. Square full of peaceful protesters. At some point, people started shouting very loudly and running (away from some sort of explosion, possibly a flash grenade used to disperse the crowd). We cannot clearly see who tossed the grenade. There was then a second explosion with a lot more smoke coming from it, presumably, the perpetrators used a gas grenade.

Perpetrators
  • Undefined
Type of violation
  • Use of excessive force
  • Use of prohibited weapons (gas grenade)
  • Use of stun grenades (close proximity)
International classification of violations
  • Right to freedom of peaceful assembly
  • Right to liberty and security of person
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CASE #391
Date
22 / 11 / 2020
City
Minsk
Description

Four fully equipped (mask, batons, etc.) OMON agents in black uniforms jumped out of a silver van ‘Ford’. One of them armed with a pumped shotgun. They joined two of their fellows who were conducting detentions of four civilians. One of them was taken towards the van by two OMON agents.

Perpetrators
  • Special Purpose Police Unit OMON
Type of violation
  • Cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
  • Slapping, kicking or punching
  • Threats against the victim (death threats)
  • Use of excessive force
International classification of violations
  • Prohibition of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment
  • Right to liberty and security of person
  • Right to Life
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CASE #390
Date
22 / 11 / 2020
City
Minsk
Description

Seven men in civilian clothes, military vests and helmets caught a man. Three of them held the victim’s arms behind his back. The victim did not resist. Then one of the men kicked the victim’s right shin to tackle him on the ground. The victim fell face down hitting his head. The abductors continued tying the victim’s hands. One of them put a knee on his head. The victim groaned and at some point extended his arm above the head, to what an abductor yelled “Hands back […]”.

Perpetrators
  • Plain clothed police officers
Type of violation
  • Abduction
  • Arbitrary or unlawful arrest and/or detention
  • Slapping, kicking or punching
  • Use of excessive force
International classification of violations
  • Right to liberty and security of person
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CASE #389
Date
26 / 09 / 2020
City
Žodzina / Zhodino
Description

Yauhen Valko was arrested at a women’s march in late September. He was in several detention centers where unidentified officers bullied, humiliated and neglected him otherwise because upon finding out him being a transgender person. In Zhodzina pre-trial detention, he and other detainees were forced to undress, demonstrated him to other staff, then they mocked him otherwise and threatened to show “what a real man is”, or shoot him.

Perpetrators
  • Detention Centre Personnel
  • Undefined
Type of violation
  • Arbitrary or unlawful arrest and/or detention
  • Beating
  • Cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
  • Denial of appropriate conditions of detention
  • Denial of legal rights of arrested persons
  • Sexual threats
  • Threats against the victim (death threats)
  • Torture
  • Torture (psychological)
  • Use of excessive force
  • Verbal abuse
International classification of violations
  • Prohibition of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment
  • Right to equality/freedom from discrimination
  • Right to liberty and security of person
  • Violation of rights of detained or imprisoned persons
  • Violations of rights of accused persons
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CASE #388
Date
25 / 10 / 2020
City
Navapolack / Novopolotsk
Description

OMON agents and unknown troops in khaki uniform performed numerous detentions on the streets. It looked like internal troops prevail in number but not civilians some of whom held symbols of Belarusian freedom movement. One of the detainees was attacked by three agents. The victim didn’t counters the attack. The police lifted him off the ground and carried away.

Perpetrators
  • Special Purpose Police Unit OMON
  • Undefined
Type of violation
  • Arbitrary or unlawful arrest and/or detention
  • Beating
  • Blows with batons and/or truncheons
  • Use of excessive force
International classification of violations
  • Right to freedom of opinion and expression
  • Right to freedom of peaceful assembly
  • Right to liberty and security of person
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