Information about the KGB putting pressure on the activist Uladzislau Yarashou appeared Human Rights Center “Viasna” website. Yarashou is working in the team of an opposition candidate Uladzimir Punchanka, collecting signatures for his nomination to run in the forthcoming parliamentary election. According to the published information, a KGB officer virtually broke into Yarashou’s apartment on 14 August in order to “discuss the national security matters”.

Uladzislau noted that the visitor introduced himself not by name but just as a KGB officer.

He questioned Yarashou about how much is paid for signature collecting activities, and who manages and organizes the process. The KGB officer threatened Uladzislau, who is a student of Economics at Mahiliou State University, with expulsion from the school for his work in the team of an opposition candidate. In addition he proposed cooperation with the KGB. The conversation lasted for about 20 minutes.

The information regarding the event was published on the website of HR Center “Viasna” on 15 August. The day after the publication KGB officials called Uladzislau Yarashou inviting him to come to their office for a talk. The activist refused to come without the official summons. After some time, the document was brought to Uladzislau’s home and he was taken to the KGB in their car. The conversation lasted for almost an hour.

At the end of the conversation Uladzislau Yarashou signed the pledge which stated that he will not disseminate false information. 

KGB officer uses fake name to introduce himself
 The day after the publication, in the morning of 17 August, a member of the Human Rights Centre “Viasna” and the president of the Belarusian Human Rights House Tatsiana Ravyaka (left) got a call from a hidden number. The caller, who introduced himself as a KGB officer, asked her to come to their office for a talk. When the human rights defender demanded to send her an official summons the officer responded: “If you’re at work, at the office of “Viasna”, we can bring up your summons now. Let’s just not do it publicly”. After some time, a KGB officer who introduced himself as Captain Aliaksandr Rubinau, handed the document to Tatsiana Ravyaka. She was being summoned “as a person with the knowledge of the circumstances relevant to the national security of the Republic of Belarus”.

The KGB officer questioned Ravyaka about the information published on the spring96.org website on 15 August, which concerned KGB pressure on Uladzislau Yarashou. Namely, from what source this information was obtained, whether Ravyaka was the author of the article, and whether she had checked the published facts in the KGB.

Tatsiana Ravyaka was warned that unreliable information about the state security services should not be published on the organization’s website. In case published, such information not only discredits the state security, but also the Republic of Belarus.

In her turn, Tatsiana Ravyaka noted that the methods used by the KGB raise certain questions as well. She recalls that the officer who handed her the summons had conducted a search in the “Viasna” office last year. However, he appeared under a different name back then:

“I would like to point out that I have serious doubts about the identity of the person who introduced himself to me as captain Rubinau. After all, this man as Aliaksandr Matskievich – not Aliaksandr Rubinau – was present during the search conducted in our office on 17 January 2011. So I, in turn, have some questions to ask the KGB on the veracity of the information they give to people interrogated or questioned on different cases. Now I would like to emphasize the following point: how should I take care about the image of the KGB when they lie even when introducing themselves?”, Ravyaka commented.

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