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Young opposition activist arrested in downtown Minsk

Young opposition activist Uladzimir Yaromenak was arrested by police in Minsk's downtown Kastrychnitskaya Square on November 6.

Human rights defenders link the arrest of Mr. Yaromenak, a member of a youth group called Malady Front, to the 95th anniversary of the October Revolution, which is celebrated on November 7.

Three activists of Malady Front were jailed after an egg attack on pro-government Communists on November 7, 2011. The young men threw eggs at activists of the Communist Party of Belarus during their rally in the square.

In May 2011, Uladzimir Yaromenak was sentenced to three years in prison in connection with a post-election demonstration staged in Minsk on December 19, 2010.

He was granted a presidential pardon on August 11 and released three days later.

Since then, Mr. Yaromenak has repeatedly been arrested and punished under the Civil Offenses Code.

A district judge in Minsk placed him under "preventive" police supervision this past March.

Mr. Yaromenak was last sentenced to jail on July 17, 2012, one day before the arrival of Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev in Minsk. //BelaPAN