Pavel Seviarynets Is Allowed to Have Radio, but Prohibited to Meet with Mother

28.08.2007. Tags: political prisoners, political persecution, Seviarynets.

On 19 August the youth leader Pavel Seviarynets was detained in Brest during presentation of his book Letters from Forest. On 22 August he was sentenced to 15 days of jail.

At first the prison guards did not agree to accept any press or radio for Seviarynets. Then a human rights activist Uladzimir Vialichkin and a local public activist Uladzimir Malei applied to the prosecutor’s office and Leninski police department of Brest. In this application they reminded that according part 3 of article 18.7 of the Process-Executive Code persons under administrative arrest have the right to read press and listen to the radio.

As a result on 27 August the chair of Leninski district police department of Brest Yury Karpinchyk agreed that a short-wave radio set could be passed to Seviarynets and ordered the guards to accept the radio for the prisoner.

On the other hand, on 28 August Seviarynets’ mother Tatsiana was refused a meeting with him.

In her interview with RFE/RL Tatsiana Seviarynets said: ‘On coming from Vitsebsk to Brest I applied to Viktar Melnikau, the head of the temporary isolator where my son is serving his term, and ask for a meeting. He refused referring to the Administrative Code.’

Now Tatsiana Seviarynets, Uladzimir Vialichkin and Pavel’s friends are trying to pass food to him.

‘I am very impressed with the support my son received during the events in Brest’, said Tatsiana Seviarynets. ‘They passed to him a sleeping bag, some clothes and fruits. I want to meet with these people and express my motherly gratitude to them.’