BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

08/02/2007

Two Belarus opposition activists released

FOCUS News Agency

Minsk. The security services in Belarus released Wednesday from prison two young opposition activists arrested earlier this week, a spokeswoman from their group said, cited by AFP .

Oleg Korban, 22, and Zmiter Hvedaruk, 18, leading members of the Malady Front, are suspected of "illegal participation in an unregistered group" and may face up to two years in jail if convicted.

"They remain suspects, they were not formally charged, they must be charged within a week," lawyer Pavel Sapelka said.

The leader of the Malady Front, Zmiter Dashkevich, has already been jailed on similar charges.

"We were held in separate cells, fed very poorly, we were not at once allowed our lawyers," Hvedaruk told AFP.

"We were given to understand that the case will soon end in a trial and we will be in jail, and not only us, but others from our group too."

Strict laws regulate political groups, limiting effective opposition in Belarus. Non-governmental organisations also face restrictions.

Several political candidates who challenged the re-election of authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko in March have since been incarcerated, many with sentences lasting years.

Source:

http://www.focus-fen.net/index.php?id=n105254