UK, Sweden, Germany, Lithuania, and EU Delegations Call for End to Repression on Anniversary of Raman Bandarenka’s Death
The embassies of the United Kingdom, Sweden, Germany, Lithuania, and the Delegation of the European Union to Belarus marked the fifth anniversary of Raman Bandarenka’s death, emphasizing that a transparent investigation has still not been conducted and calling for an end to repression in Belarus.
“Five years have passed since Raman Bandarenka died under tragic circumstances. To this day, no transparent investigation has been carried out and those responsible have not been held accountable. We remember Raman and call for an end to the repression targeting peaceful citizens,” the joint statement published on the diplomatic missions’ social media accounts said.
Raman Bandarenka was at the “Square of Changes” in Minsk on November 11, 2020, when a group of unidentified individuals began cutting down ribbons there. He was beaten by unknown assailants, forced into a van, and taken to the Central District Police Department, then later to a hospital with severe head injuries. Bandarenka died in the hospital on November 12. On February 18, more than three months after his death, the Prosecutor General’s Office announced that a criminal case had been opened under Part 3 of Article 147 of the Criminal Code (“Intentional infliction of grievous bodily harm resulting in death by negligence”). The investigation into Bandarenka’s death was later suspended.