Police Arrest Valery Shchukin for ‘Begging’

13.08.2007. Tags: Shchukin, political persecution, detentions.
Source: Charter`97.

Staff-members of Vitebsk railway department of the interior detained a well-known human rights activist Valery Schukin when he was raising funds for repaying Tatsiana Buynevich the moral damage caused to her when she was performing the responsibilities of the regional electoral commission secretary.

In compliance with the citizen Buynevich’s claim the court made a judgment that Schukin who attempted to attend the open sitting of the commission offended her. He was guarded to the isolation ward and spent the New Year holidays and Christmas there. And in June the trial of the Schukin’s criminal case on offense of Tatsyana Buyevich and another three members of the district commission resulted in sentencing him to pay 250 thousand rubles to the electoral commission volunteer for the moral damage. The pensioner does not have the money at his disposal and thus he had nothing to do but to turn to responsive people for help, the Radio Racyja reports.

13 August he went out onto the bridge over the railway next to the house where Tatsiana Buyevich lives and started distributing the appeal to the public for rendering ‘financial support to the 65-year-old Valery Schukin for paying the 37-year-old Tatsiana Buyevich the money for her moral expenses’. Hardly he managed to raise 1 200 rubles as the police patrol were sent for by a vigilant inhabitant or by Buyevich’s mother who came out to have a look at what was going on. The militia patrol sent for the patrol wagon and the human rights activist was taken to the jail.

Nothing criminal was found in the leaflet distributed by Schukin and in two hours the human rights activist was released. The former deputy of the Supreme Soviet was only asked not to distribute the appeal but simply to stand begging and in this case his actions may not be considered as disorderly conduct.