The parents of the anti-government blogger Roman Protassevich imprisoned in Belarus suspect that their son was tortured. Now the mother turns to Chancellor Merkel for help.
Berlin (dpa) – The mother of the government critic Roman Protassewitsch imprisoned in Belarus has asked Chancellor Angela Merkel to campaign for the release of her son and other prisoners in the country.
“We ask you very much to help us so that all innocent people get out of the prisons,” said Natalia Protassewitsch the “Bild”. “They urgently need help because they are exposed to sadism and violence every day.” She called for the Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko to be stopped. “Every additional day, no, every additional hour that goes by costs innocents, including children, their lives.”
Almost three weeks ago, the Belarusian authorities forced a Ryanair passenger plane on its way from Athens to Vilnius to make a stopover in Minsk and arrested the government critic Roman Protassewitsch and his friend Sofia Sapega who were on board. The EU then again imposed sanctions on the former Soviet republic.
The blogger’s father, Dmitri Protassevich, told the “Bild” that her letters would not be delivered to her son. “Even his lawyer can’t talk to us freely on the phone,” he said. “Instead, the state has already published two videos in which he makes forced confessions.” There are clear signs of torture. His nose is crooked. It was probably broken. He has bruises on his neck. “An expert told us that it was a strangle mark.” Protassevich’s parents live in exile in Poland.
On Thursday the European Parliament called for further sanctions against Belarus. There should be punitive measures against crude oil processing and other industrial sectors. Belarusian airlines have been banned from flying into EU airspace since last Saturday.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210612-99-961387 / 3
Picture report
