“If we had known it would take that long, we would have considered a different option, although you don’t know if that would have improved,” says Vladislav Kusnetschik. For the previous yr, she and her father Vitalij have been hiding in Sweden’s Minsk embassy to flee persecution by the Belarusian authorities.
The two males arrived on the embassy on September 11, 2020, to request political asylum. After being requested by way of intercom to show elsewhere, the 2 overcame the embassy wall and have since refused to go away the premises.
torture looms
Images of Belarusian safety officers violently dispersing anti-Lukashenko protests had been ubiquitous within the media final yr. The President of Belarus is believed to have rigged the August 2020 election to remain in energy.
At the time, anti-Lukashenko protesters had been recurrently being arrested and abused in Vitebsk and different Belarusian cities. Vitalij, one of many protesters, was caught by law enforcement officials after spraying pepper in his eyes.
Vladislav recollects how, with the assistance of fellow demonstrators, he was in a position to drag his father away and run away, and provides a number of witnesses who can affirm the occasions.
Belarusian authorities later accused the 2 males of creating threats and utilizing violence in opposition to law enforcement officials.
But there’s some doubt about this. Vadim Drosdov, the lawyer representing Vladislav and Vitalij Kusnetschik, says, “We have no information on how the investigators determined how the officers were injured, beaten and sustained physical pain, as the officers never tried to treat the officers.” Didn’t identify it.”
Drosdov says his consumer has been dwelling within the Swedish embassy for the previous yr fearing that Belarusian authorities will arrest and torture him.
Swedish media cited overseas ministry statements as saying foreigners couldn’t declare asylum in Swedish embassies, however the overseas ministry clarified that it was negotiating with Kusnetshiks.
name for united nations support
Drosdov says that Vladislav and Vitalij Kusnetschik filed a grievance in opposition to Sweden with the United Nations Committee Against Torture (CAT) in September 2020, warning the physique if Swedish motion or inaction results in their arrest. So they face torture by the Lukashenko regime.
On 1 October, the United Nations physique agreed on preliminary measures that Sweden ought to chorus from any motion that would result in the arrest of the boys. It additionally referred to as on Sweden to grant immunity to the Kusnetshiks.
“Initial measures do not entitle the Swedish government to recognize Kusnetshiks as refugees or to grant them a residence permit, even if they can do so,” says Drosdov. He says the United Nations will assess whether or not to simply accept the boys’s grievance in November. They intend to remain on the embassy till then.
effectively taken care
Sweden has offered males with a front room, mattress, bathe, rest room, washer, kitchen, fridge and crockery. He has been given weight to remain in form. They used to prepare meals; Today, they like to prepare dinner themselves. “This is a big plus, it makes time pass quickly,” says Vladislav. “They buy the groceries we need.”
They may even step exterior to catch some contemporary air each time they need. “We have everything we need, and we have a good relationship with the embassy staff.” He says he does not have a TV or pc, however fortunately he has the telephone again on. He says that the potential for a medical checkup is being thought of, though earlier media stories stated that each the folks wanted medical assist.
The Kusnetshiks have not seen their household in a yr. The embassy is not going to permit visits, and males should depend on video calls to speak to their family members. “I’m not too worried about us anymore,” says Vladislav. Instead, he says, he’s extra involved about his household, which is struggling financially now that he can’t earn any cash. “My mother and my wife fell ill with the coronavirus last year, but they are battling it,” he says. “The kids miss us and are asking when we will return home.”
Vladislav says, “The ideal solution for us would be to live in our own country without fear of the future – but that would be possible only when we have new, fair elections and when our laws are fully respected.”
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With inputs from TheIndianEXPRESS
