Иллюстративное фото: ГУВД Мингорисполкома
In Belarus, people convicted under political articles and sentenced to so-called “home chemistry” have begun to be offered a replacement of the punishment with a milder one — correctional labour. According to Nasha Niva, at least five such cases are known.
According to the outlet, these cases involve residents of Minsk as well as small district centres. All of them have already been serving their sentences for a long time; some have about a year left to serve, others only a few months.
Correctional labour предусматривает that a person continues working at their main place of employment, while the state withholds between 10% and 25% of their wages. In the cases described in the report, the maximum deduction of 25% was applied.
At the same time, some of the existing restrictions are lifted: there is no requirement to observe a strict home stay schedule, and regular police checks are discontinued. Restrictions related to alcohol consumption outside working hours are also eased.
The decision to replace the sentence is made by a court. If the relevant motion is submitted by the police, it is usually approved without difficulty.
For those convicted under non-political articles, this practice is applied regularly. However, in relation to political cases, such a mechanism had effectively not been used before, the authors note.
The exact number of people serving “home chemistry” sentences under political articles is unknown.