Rector of the Roman Catholic parish of St. Andrew the Apostle in Lyntupy (Vitebsk region of the Republic of Belarus), priest Alyaksandr Baran, after his release from the pre-trial detention center, told Katolik.life the circumstances of the case brought up against him.
“It was like thunder out of the blue – I was invited to report to the police – just for a conversation. And it turned out that they already had everything ready for my arrest,” the priest recalls.
An administrative report was immediately drawn up against the priest for “illegal picketing,” under Article 24.23 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of Belarus. The reason for this was the fact that the cleric posted the flag of Ukraine and the white-red-white flag on his social network page on February 24, the day Russia unleashed a full-scale war against Ukraine.
“For me, as for other Christians, it white-red-white flag – ed.) is a sign of the risen Christ, who carries light. And I placed the flag of Ukraine because I served there, I have friends and relatives in Ukraine, and in this way I wanted to show that I remember and love them,” said Father Alyaksandr Baran.
The priest was immediately put into custody.
“Thank God, I was allowed to get my glasses and the Breviary so that I could pray. Conditions in the confinement are like in the Middle Ages. Before I was allowed to have a lawyer, they were rude to me. I understood what the priests were going through during Stalin’s repression in the 1930s,” he said.
Three days later, when he was supposed to be either legally either released or tried, a new report was drawn up against him, thus extending his term in custody for another three days. This time the priest was accused of distributing extremist materials (Article 19.11 of the Administrative Code of the Republic of Belarus).
The official of the Catholic Church believes that by such actions the representatives of the Lukashenko regime are trying to discredit the clerics who have authority among the believers.
Priest pleaded not guilty to all charges. The trial of the priest is scheduled for April 4, 2022. Priest Alyaksandr asks the faithful to support him with prayer and noted that he has already received many words of support from parishioners who support and sympathize with him.
