One of the participants in the Rainbow gathering in the Rasony district told Vitebskaya Viasna how the detention unfolded.
The man described as false the Interior Ministry’s claim that participants in the tent camp had allegedly planned to conduct a ritual. According to him, no ritual had been planned and people were simply spending time together. Law enforcement officials also claimed that people had been naked in front of children. The participant said nobody had walked around naked, except perhaps in the sauna or while swimming afterward.
The man suggested that the camp may have been monitored using a drone, which flew over the forest several times earlier in the day.
Before the detentions, law enforcement officers searched the tents, looking for alcohol and drugs. Afterward, several people discovered that their personal belongings had gone missing. The detainees were taken away very quickly, and many did not have time to gather their belongings. Many left their mobile phones and other possessions in the forest, as well as the cars they had arrived in.
According to the man, law enforcement officers called the detainees “petushary,” a derogatory Russian slang term, refused to provide copies of detention reports, tried to leave blank spaces in the reports, would not allow detainees to cross out empty lines, or even tore up the reports if detainees added anything other than the official version of events. One person who objected during questioning was beaten in a toilet, the man alleged.
According to the witness, the adult detainees were not given food for about 20 hours, and drinking water was available only from a tap in the toilet. They were allowed to sleep on the floor of a local House of Culture. Children who had been detained with their parents were moved to a sports and fitness centre, where they were given gymnastics mats.
On July 29, about 300 people, including 67 Russian citizens and one Israeli citizen, were detained at a Rainbow Family gathering in the Rasony district. Administrative charges were brought against the detainees for violating regulations on the organisation of public events (Article 24.23 of the Code of Administrative Offences).
Rainbow Family is an international movement that brings together supporters of harmonious coexistence with nature, alternative lifestyles, and protest against the conventions of capitalist society. Rainbow Family gatherings are usually held in sparsely populated natural areas.
