At 10 am. on 2 December the the correspondent of the non-state newspaper Narodnaya Volia in Homel region Iryna Makavetskaya was at Homel Chyhunachny Borough Court. She wanted to write an article about an open trial. In the very beginning of the trial the head of the court Tatsiana Adrybets ordered Makavetskaya to leave the court hall. The journalist refused to do it saying she would obey only to lawful demands of the court.
As a result, Adrybets had to call the police, who detained Makavetskaya, took her to Homel Chyhunachny Borough Board of Internal Affairs and composed a protocol of violation of article 166 of the Code of Administrative Violations. This article provides fine or up to 15 days of jail as punishment.
The police didn’t admit the lawyer Leanid Sudalenka (head of Homel branch of national public association “Legal Initiative”) to witness the composition of the protocol.
The administrative case against Iryna Makavetskaya was passed to Homel Tsentralny Borough Court. On 6 December the court was to have tried the journalist Iryna Makavetskaya.
— I don’t know exactly what made the judge to postpone the trial, — said Iryna Makavetskaya, — but we together with the head of Homel branch of “Legal Initiative” Leanid Sudalenka filed a complaint to the prosecutor’s office with the demand to bring a criminal case against the heads of the court Tatsiana Adrybets for hindrance to lawful professional activity of journalist. Besides, a complaint against the policeman who detained me for more than three hours without composing any protocol of violation was filed to the head of the boar of internal affairs of Homel City Executive Committee. When judge Adrybets called the police, she said: “I won’t let making you a martyr so that all those OSCEs would come to me for interviews”. That’s why we composed a complaint to the Ministry of Justice against the shameless behavior of the judge, who also violated my professional rights, said Makavetskaya.
