Minsk Resident Earlier Arrested For Canadian Flag In Window Detained

• 19.06.2023, 11:20

He is now kept in the jail in Akrestsin Street.

Siarhei Panin from Minsk, who had been previously arrested for having a Canadian flag in his window, has been detained. His house has been searched, now he is kept in Akrestsina, report human rights defenders.

Panin was sentenced to 15 days of administrative detention in 2021. He lives in Tsentralny district of Minsk. The Canadian flag and the Pahonia emblem had been hanging in his window since 2020. The police demanded it be taken down.

"My husband explained it by saying that in January there was the youth hockey championship and he supported the Canadian national team, so he put up the Canadian flag," said Alesia, Siarhiei's wife. "And "Pahonia" is for decorating the window. Besides, "Pahonia" is a historical and cultural value." As a result, the law enforcers took the landlord along with the flag and punished him for "disobedience to legal orders of a police officer".

The reason for the current detention is not yet known.