Mother of Zeltser, US prisoner of Belarusian jail, died

• 16.09.2008, 15:20

Lawyer Zmitser Harachka is going to ask the Supreme Court of Belarus to change a measure of restraint for Emanuel Zeltser in connection with his mother’s death.

He will seek that a measure of restraint will be changed to non-custodial sentence.

Harachka reminded that on September 26, the Supreme Court is to hear his cassation appeal on Zeltser’s acquaintance on a basis of his innocence.

Mark Zeltser, brother of the convicted, told to BelaPAN correspondents that their mother, 92-year-old Bertha Zeltser, had died on September 16. In June, she addressed Alyaksandr Lukashenka and called to save the life her son and not to deprive him of vital medicines. “We haven’t received any reply to the address,” M. Zeltser said.

Zeltser and his secretary Vladlena Funk were detained on March 12. The trial was held behind the closed doors and lasted from July 30 to August 11. Dzmitry Klimovich was a judge. Zeltser was sentenced to three years in prison on charges of attempted industrial espionage and the use of fake documents. Funk was sentenced to one year in prison on the same charges.

The US citizen was also charged with smuggling drugs, but the court found that medicines taken by Zeltser for the last 15 years and which were confiscated during the arrest, were not illegal drugs.The authorities of the US seek his release on humanitarian grounds, as his health has deteriorated greatly in prison. The state of health of the US citizen Emanuel Zeltser was so bad that militia guards carry him into the third storey of the court in arms, as he was unable to go upstairs without help.

In august, the US embassy gave all necessary medications to the Belarusian authorities, but Zeltser didn’t receive them.