Belarusians Picketed Russian Embassy

• 19.12.2007, 8:59

Activists of the civil campaign “Jeans for Freedom!” have taken part in the rally in memory of Yuriy Chervochkin, an activist of the Other Russia (Drugaya Rossiya). Russian authorities are suspected in his assassination.

Young people formed a line in front of the entrance to the Embassy of Russia. They were holding candles and portraits of the activist in their hands.

In 10 minutes after the protest began, policemen in armored jackets approached the picketers. They copied passport details of the young people and left.

Yuriy Chervochkin had been detained many times and interrogated (after the protest in Finance Ministry with the demand to return depositions in Sberbank, the rally in support of the strike of Surgutneftegaz workers, a protest against rigged results of the election to Moscow Duma, participation in Marches of Dissenters). He had been repeatedly threatened. He spent several months in remand prison for the protest near Moscow city Duma. On November 22, before the March of Dissenters, Yuriy called to the headquarters of the United Civil Front and told that UBOP Special Forces officers were shadowing him. In an hour he was found in a street, brutally beaten up. On December 10 Yuriy Chervochkin died without regaining consciousness in the Burdenko Neurosurgery Research Institute.