Last modified on Fri 28 May 2021 04.53 EDT
Church bells rang in the city of Byarozawka as hundreds of mourners laid Vitold Ashurak to rest. They draped the white-red-white flag favoured by the Belarusian opposition over his body, as local police kept a wary eye on the funeral.
Sentenced to five years in prison after last yearâs mass demonstrations against Alexander Lukashenko, the 50-year-old protest leader survived less than one. When Ashurakâs body was returned to his family, his head was entirely covered in bandages â only his mouth was visible, a family friend said.
âWe had to accept his arrest, his trial, his sentencing to five years in prison and now weâre being forced to accept that weâll never see him again,â said Volha Bykowskaja, a journalist and friend of Ashurakâs who described the day she learned he died as a âgreat sorrow ⦠a person fell into the mill of the system and it crushed himâ.
On May 26, it became known about the suicide of 18-year-old
Dzmitry Stakhouski that had taken place a day earlier in Minsk. His page on VKontakte contains a suicide note, accusing the Investigative Committee in his death. It also says about the pressure of law enforcement agencies, which was the reason for the terrible deed . Dzmitry s friends told us a little about him, tut.by reports.
The young man s friends specify that Dzmitry was 18 years old and say the young man was an orphan.
- We know that he only had an aunt, but we have had no luck getting in touch with her, - Dzmitry s friends say. They also say that in the evening of May 25 he wrote in social networks to his friends that he was on the 16th floor of a high-rise building near the Dana Mall shopping center and that he was going to jump down. He sent a picture of the place. Friends remember trying to talk the guy out of such an act. Everything happened around 11 p.m. At about 1 a.m., the young man stopped appearing on
27.05.2021, 9:28
The diaspora held a rally in the capital of Ukraine.
The Belarusians of Kiev came out for a rally against the terrorist regime of Lukashenka, the Basta telegram channel reports. The terrorist regime in Belarus is killing peaceful citizens who are fighting for a free Belarus.
Vitold Ashurak was killed, and just a few hours ago, it became known about the death of
Dzmitry Stakhouski. We call upon the international community to increase pressure on the dictatorial regime and help to get rid of the usurper.
The Belarusians in Kiev are ready to return home and help Cockroach to fly to The Hague, - the protesters said.