Young Front leader Zmiter Hvedaruk: «I fell to ground, but they went on beating me»
- 14.12.2007, 8:39
Zmiter Hvedaruk began to feel better yesterday evening. He told Radio Svaboda on telephone about his health and the events taken place.
“Thanks to God, I feel better. I can speak, though my head is aching. When I try to stand up, I feel giddy. I move on a gurney. But it could have been worse. After some blows at head, occiput, jaw, temple, I fell on the ground. Some riot policemen went on beating me. I can’t say how many policemen beat me, because it was dark, and then I fainted and regained consciousness in hospital.”
The Young Front leader thinks his beating is connected with his journey to the USA and meeting with President Bush:
“I think my trip to the USA could cause the beating. Many things speak for it. I was cut out from the protesters by cordon of riot police. They stroke me to the ground and beat me, and only after that they threw me back to the crowd with the words: “Take your man back, he had a good journey to the USA.”
I am thankful to my friends from the United States, who defend me, who criticised the yesterday’s acts of the regime. I wasn’t the only victim. One more guy, also Zmiter, was broken his leg, girl Palina was broken her finger, many people have bruises. I was taken to hospital. Only now I began to speak normally.”
It should be reminded that after some hours when the rally in defence of independence was cracked down, the US Department of State condemned brutal acts of the Belarusian authorities, beating of youth leader Zmiter Hvedaruk, who visited the USA in the part of Belarusian delegation last week, was singled out.
The US Ambassador to Belarus Karen Stewart condemned the acts of the Belarusian authorities and said she was going to seek a meeting with Zmiter Hvedaruk, who is in hospital.
The international human rights organisations have also expressed protest against acts of the Belarusian authorities towards participants of the action “For Independent Belarus!” timed to Russian president Vladimir Putin’s visit to Minsk.
Some people were injured during disbanding of the rally on 12 December. Not only young people, but also elderly people became victims. An aged man was beaten on his legs. He shouted he was disabled, but it didn’t stop riot police, and the man fell to the ground.