57-Year-Old Belarusian Woman Made ‘Offensive’ Comments Online About Lukashenka And Karayeu

• 20.12.2023, 14:15

What happened next?

The Maskouski District Court of Brest sentenced 57-year-old local resident Iryna Sankouskaya to 1.5 years in prison under articles of “desecration of state symbols” (Article 370 of the Criminal Code), “insulting a representative of the government and Lukashenka” (Articles 369 and 368 of the Criminal Code), writes the Viasna human rights center.

The Brest resident was accused of publishing in one of her Telegram chats in 2020 and 2021 a photo of the state flag of Belarus, against which a Nazi swastika was depicted.

In addition, Iryna Sankouskaya was accused of making several comments about ex-Minister of Internal Affairs Yury Karayeu and Aliaksandr Lukashenka, which the court considered offensive.

During the arrest, the law-enforcers filmed a video with Iryna Sankouskaya, in which they forced her to apologize for her comments. The Brest woman stands in front of the camera in handcuffs.