Riot police raided a bookstore in the Belarusian city of Hrodno on Oct. 9, interrupting a lecture by anarchist historian Pyotr Ryabov, who was visiting from Moscow State Pedagogical University, and arresting him on the pretext of breaking up a "unsanctioned mass gathering." Ryabov, who had been giving a presentation on "Libertarian Social Thought," was convicted two days later on charges of "hooliganism" and sentenced to six days in jail. He promptly went on hunger strike. Belarusian human rights activist Alyaksandr Vaytseshyk, who came to the hearing to support Ryabov, was detained on the scene and charged with contempt of court. Ryabov's supporters picketed the Belarusian embassy in Moscow Oct. 13 to demand his release. (ContraInfo [8], Oct. 14; LibCom [9], Oct. 13; RFE/RL [10], Oct. 12)
This was the second such incident in Belarus in recent months, In August, riot police in Baranovichi raided a presentation by Russian anarchist and anti-fascist activist Alexei Sutuga, detaining all who were present—15 people in all. (Pramen [11], Aug. 27)
