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Opposition activist Makayew jailed for commemorating anti-Bolshevik rebels

A judge of the Maskowski District Court in Minsk on Monday sentenced opposition activist Alyaksandr Makayew to five days in jail, human rights defenders said.

Mr. Makayew was found guilty of holding an unsanctioned mass event under Article 23.34 of the Civil Offenses Code in connection with last month's flower-laying ceremony commemorating anti-Bolshevik rebels in the Minsk region.

On November 24, Mr. Makayew and Ilya Dabratvor were briefly detained by police as they and several more activists visited the village of Hrozava near the city of Slutsk. They had laid flowers and lit candles at a memorial honoring rebels killed by Bolshevik forces during a 1920 uprising when police interfered, describing the commemoration as an unsanctioned demonstration.

In 2012, Mr. Makayew was sentenced to a fine of five million rubels over a similar commemorative event in the Slutsk district. The Supreme Court has yet to consider his appeal against the fine. //BelaPAN