Garry Pogoniaylo: “Ozharovsky should take out a process against those who’s put him to remand prison”



Belarusian Ministry of Information decreed to stop the trial about administrative violation of law by the Russian ecologist Andrey Ozharovsky who was taken to pre-trial detention centre for outspreading printed exemplars of the Critics of Environmental Impact Assessment (OVOS) of Belarusian Nuclear Power Station. He was also decreed to be given all printed materials which were withdrawn from him back. This is decreed in the act # 16 of Ministry of Information of Belarus of November 3. The copy of this document has already been transferred to ownership of BeloPAN agency.

Let’s remind that the Russian nuclear-physicist, the coordinator of projects of “Ecodefense” group (Moscow) Andrey Ozharovsky was arrested on October 9 in Ostrovets (Grodno region). Ozharovsky came there to take part in public hearings which were dedicated to preliminary report on Environmental Impact Assessment of Belarusian Nuclear Power Station. He was withdrawn 94 printed exemplars of “Critical opinion of preliminary report on Environmental Impact Assessment of Belarusian Nuclear Power Station”. At the time of his arrest he wasn’t handing round any printed material. Ostrovets court accused Ozharovsky for disorderly conduct; he was sentenced to 7 days of arrest and spent them in the local pre-trial detention centre. The decree signed by the deputy minister of information of Belarus Igor Laptenok states that there are no elements of administrative violation in actions of Andrey Ozharovsky. “According to part 2 of article 22.9 of the Special Part of Administrative Violations Code of the Republic of Belarus imposition of administrative sanctions is supposed to be enabled under conditions of handing round periodic printed material without any publisher’s imprint. But the materials withdrawn are not materials of printed mass media”. – is noted in the document. The deputy minister of information of Belarus enacted to stop administrative case and to return the ecologist all exemplars of printed materials. The reporter of www.Euramost.org asked the lawyer of Belarusian Helsinki Committee Garry POGONIAYLO to comment on this decision.

- How would you appraise such behavior of the authorities from the point of view of a lawyer?

- Every department aims to act and do as they want, without a backward glance and without corresponding to the law and as a rule mindlessly. So, when a person succeeds to get just consideration of his or her problem, it becomes obvious that there are violations of law from the side of authorities. People rarely succeed to win but sometimes in such fights they manage to prove something. It’s obvious that in the case with Ozharovsky, that it’s just an aim to punish and press a person who gives information contradictory to that suitable for the authorities and told by the authorities. The example is this situation with Nuclear Power Station.

- You’ve said that in this case the law was violated. What would you recommend – should he draw a law suite to those who accused him in violation he didn’t make?

- Surely, he should. At least I would vindicate psychological damage from these villains. This man spent 7 days in jail for nothing!

- In you opinion what stands behind the situation which happened to the Russian ecologist: politics, economics or just an unwillingness of Belarusian authorities to listen to public opinion?

- It’s all politics. Politics of power which is aimed to hunt public society and to persecute nonconformity. It’s clear politics. And the executors are different ministries and departments and separate officials. They do it not observing law at all, but operating commands of regional administrations or higher officials.

- Our authorities are very interested in construction of this Nuclear Power Station. But in the same time all package is given to Russian side. And it will be constructed using Russian money. Maybe all what happened was connected with the will to “cave in” to the Russian contractors?

- All contracts, indeed, are given to the Russian side and everything was going to be like this. But the Belarusians maintain resistance not because Russians will build but because this is the decision of our government and our political leader. Opponents of this construction of NPS will naturally object to this building as much as they can, they will look for other forms of protest, exept informational. And the reaction of our authorities is forecasted.

- So if protests will continue, arrests like Andrey Ozharovsky’s case will continue too?

- Of course they will. It’s obvious.

Dmitry KRAMCHUK