Graffiti trio plead not guilty as trial opens

All three young men arrested over Belarusian-language graffiti pleaded not guilty to the charges against them at the start of their trial at the Frunzenski District Court in Minsk on Monday.

Vadzim Zharomski and Vyachaslaw Kasineraw are answering charges of hooliganism by a group of people and property damage, while Maksim Pyakarski stands accused of property damage.

Judge Ala Skuratovich rejected Mr. Pyakarski's request that the proceedings be conducted in Belarusian but allowed the accused to speak Belarusian in court.

Messrs. Pyakarski and Zharomski are on trial over graffiti on a concrete fence depicting the swastika and the Soviet hammer-and-sickle emblem in red circles with crosses through and a diamond-shaped piece of Belarus' traditional ornament between them. The image also featured a message that said in Belarusian, «Belarus Must Be Belarusian.» They also stand accused over a piece of street art on the fence around a former military base that depicts a person hurling a Molotov cocktail and involves a Belarusian-language message, «Revolution of Consciousness is Already Underway.»

Mr. Pyakarski testified that the graffiti pieces had been painted by him while Mr. Zharomski had only helped him carry brushes and paint. The young man defended his street art and said that the graffiti featuring the swastika and the hammer-and-sickle emblem was meant to say that Belarus should never again be under Nazi or Soviet rule.

Messrs. Pyakarski and Zharomski said that they studied Belarusian history and led healthy lifestyles. The men said that they did not smoke or take drugs.