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"If a policeman, and not a protester, had died in the line of duty, I would have brought a wreath for him as well"

Marked with a red mark hit especially hard

On the night of August 10, Dmitry Barabanov managed to access the Internet via VPN. He saw pictures of wounded protesters and watched videos that showed people bleeding. He was sure that many participants of this protest died. In the morning, with the intention to show his solidarity, Dmitry ordere

Dmitry Barabanov,a manager
Age: 40 years old
City: Minsk
When: 10.08.2020

Dmitry was detained on the morning of August 10 in Minsk downtown

Held in custody: 1 day in Central District Internal Affairs Department (Central RUVD)
Medical diagnosis: Hypertension crisis, loss of consciousness, bruises
Aftermath: Nervous breakdowns, panic attacks, counselling with a psychotherapist

Author: Project team August2020

Photo: Project team August2020

“I’m sorry, I’m talking to you now and my emotions make me slightly nauseous, I have a lump in my throat from overexertion. This is my first interview. I only testified to a non-government organization that investigated crimes against humanity in Belarus.” 

I understood that I was going to a place where anything could happen to me

“I will not tell you where I ordered the wreath, so as not to expose good people. When I came to pick it up and told them why I had ordered it, the florist refused to take money from me and thanked me for my gesture. 

I understood that I was going to a place where anything could happen to me, I wasn’t sure of my safety. At that time, I didn’t have any intention to side with ‘White-Red-White’ (the colours of the historical Belarusian flag that has become the symbol of the protest. -August 2020) or to oppose Lukashenko. My father brought me up this way: if someone is beaten, protect them first, and then find out the reason. And I was going to ‘stand up’ for those who were hurt. I headed to the ‘starting point’ of all Belarusian roads - to Independence Avenue. Why there? Because I didn’t know the exact location of the recent protests, so I went downtown.”

There were no ordinary people in the Square - that morning the entire downtown was patrolled by law enforcement officers. Dmitry studied at the military academy in the past and did compulsory military service, so he tried to find common ground with the police.

My father brought me up this way: if someone is beaten, protect them first, and then find out the reason. And I was going to ‘stand up’ for those who were hurt

“The patrol approached me and asked the reason for my being there. I explained. They brought a man in civilian clothes, who began talking to me in a very rude manner. He used provocative phrases, saying, “You are children of cattle, you should be spoken to in a different way.” He grabbed my arm with force, and I told him not to touch me, and that I would go myself, because I came here consciously and I had nothing to be afraid of.” 

Dmitry was handcuffed and taken behind the Palace of the Republic. There were many special forces there, and two Lieutenant Colonels were assigned to guard him. Dmitry tried to communicate with them. The Lieutenant Colonels listened to him and were very surprised that an ordinary man decided to commit such an act. According to Dmitry, his story made them upset. But they took off the handcuffs. 

“They were surprised that I held an executive position in a good company. Apparently, they were given incorrect information about the protesters and those who showed solidarity with them. I asked them, “What would you do in my place?” They replied, “We would not break the law.” But I didn’t break the law!!! I deleted all the apps in my phone, but I kept a picture of the wreath and uploaded it to the Cloud. In case I got killed, that picture could be found later, and everybody would learn that people weren’t just staying at home, people were trying to do something.”

“Traitor of the Motherland, you’re fucked, you won’tcome out of this place alive” 

“After a while, traffic police came to the Square. They were polite, handcuffed me, and even asked me if it hurt. On the way to the police department, they told me that today was their first day at work. 


They brought me to the Central District Internal Affairs Department (Central RUVD) and took me to a room that looked like a schoolroom with desks. There were a lot of policemen sitting there. I greeted them, they greeted me. I think they took me for a police officer. Even a Lieutenant Colonel stood up to shake my hand. And when he saw that I had my hands behind my back, he abruptly pulled his hand away, and everyone laughed. Everyone was sitting without balaclavas, and I could see their faces.” 

Dmitry was taken to the corridor and made stand facing the wall. He chose a place where he could see the police officers and hear what they were talking about. 

“Many of the senior officers were rude to me, “Moron, motherfucker, traitor to the Motherland, you’re fucked, you won’t leave this place alive.” 

My father used to tell me that a true officer would never allow himself to behave boorishly. And I wasn’t shy to remind the law enforcers about this

“At some point they brought in a guy and put him against the wall next to me. His nose was bandaged and he bled profusely. I asked what happened to him. The guy was very frightened, he was not even white because of fear, but blue, as if he was about to pass out. It was obvious that he was not strong physically, a stranger to violence. He said he and his girlfriend were riding bicycles in Chelyuskintsy Park. They were detained, and their bikes were left behind. A policeman pulled out a knife and cut his nose open. I repeatedly asked him for details, because I knew what it meant to carry bladed weapons. A knife bayonet is only allowed during combat operations or when on duty in a unit. The guy described that knife. It was not a combat knife bayonet, but an ordinary one, like a kitchen knife or something like that.” 


Dmitry raised an alarm and insisted that medics should be brought in. He was sure that the guy could die from blood loss, it kept flowing down his face.
 

“They called an ambulance for him, and there was a doctor in her 50s and two young nurses. They examined him; one of the nurses couldn’t contain herself and started shouting, “Sadists!” And her older colleague began to calm her down and whispered, “If you don’t keep your mouth shut, we will not be allowed to take him away.” Eventually, they took him to the hospital.

I told the police officers that people had died yesterday, and they explained to me that no one had died. Then I said, “Thank God I was wrong.” They didn’t expect this, they thought I would be rude and would try to argue with them.”

Then a short man in a balaclava came in. Dmitry claims that it was a Senior Lieutenant. He asked who had suggested to call the doctors in. The policemen pointed at Dmitry. 
 

“He started threatening me, even though he was half my size. He said if I continued to ‘show off’, he would damage me. I smiled at the Senior Lieutenant and calmly said, “If you damage me, I will just turn into one of you.” (Dmitry implied that the officers were morally damaged – August 2020)

  I smiled at the Senior Lieutenant and calmly said, “If you damage me, I will just turn into one of you"

“After that, a very strong, very big officer in civilian clothes came in. Everyone was afraid of him. He took me out to the courtyard. There were two big puddles, and he suggested that I choose the one he would dip my face in and drown me. Literally, he said, “Pick the puddle you’re going to die in.” I replied that his eagerness was frightening and remarked that he probably wasn’t an officer. That really triggered him, and he kicked my kneecap. He thought I would fall down, but I had been doing cross-fit for four years and that kick was weak.”

Dmitry was lucky, they didn’t dip him in the puddle; he was brought back inside and left under the supervision of a Major and a Lieutenant Colonel. 
 

“You can kill me, but I won’t listen to you”

“An officer in the balaclava approached me several times and tried to provoke me; he wanted to hear that I was against the government. I told him that my knees hurt a lot, because all the time I was standing against the wall with my legs wide apart. The reply was, “You’ll tolerate it.” I dared to sit down anyway and said, “You can kill me, but I won’t listen to you; just know that for the men wearing uniforms you behave with no dignity.” The policemen considered me to be a provocateur and a very well prepared one. In reality, all my actions and words were just a result of the life I had lived in this country.”

Six years ago, Dmitry was treated for clinical depression. He used to have nervous breakdowns and panic attacks back then, but he forgot about them after a long therapy. In the police department, Dmitry had his first nervous breakdown in many years.
 

“I had a panic attack, I was petrified, but the reassurance of my innocence helped me keep myself together. I started screaming very loudly, “If my father were alive and saw what you were doing, he would shoot you all.” I shouted out of despair, I thought I was going to die. Later, I realized why they didn’t beat me - because I saw their faces without balaclavas. 

By the evening, all of them wore balaclavas; they started to bring in a lot of detainees. There was an old man among them, about 70 years old, but in a pretty good shape. They put him on the floor face down; he was very pale. I decided to act the same way as with the guy whose nose was cut open, and I told the officers that the man was dying (they were very afraid of that). One of the officers came over to check on his condition. And then I was just stunned - the man started shouting with great force and with a lot of confidence that the police didn’t understand what they were doing, that Tikhanovskaya was elected President, that ‘everything has already changed, but you haven’t been told about it yet.’ Two policemen ran up and started beating the old man with batons, I realized that they would beat him to death, and I threw myself on top of him to cover him. The others were afraid even to look at the law enforcement officers, but I knew they wouldn’t touch me. They stopped beating the old man when I covered him.”     

Two policemen ran up and started beating the old man with batons, I realized that they would beat him to death, and I threw myself on top of him to cover him 

It was only in the evening that they agreed to take Dmitry to the toilet for the first time. Seeing this, another guy detained at the protest rally asked to go to the toilet as well. But in response to his request, they laid him on the ground and started beating him. At first, he was screaming, then wheezing, and then he lost consciousness. Dmitry says that he wanted to approach him, but they stopped him with the phrase ‘cherish what you’ve been allowed to do.’  

 

“They began to register us and make an inventory of our belongings. The officer who was dealing with me said, “You’re fucked, you were the first to bring flowers, we were given instructions to treat you in a ‘special’ way!” And I answered, “Listen, if a policeman, not a protester, had died in the line of duty, I would have brought a wreath for him as well.”
 

I was told that I would be transferred to the Temporary Detention Center for three days, and I was glad. It meant that today I would stay alive. After the inventory of my belongings, I was supposed to be searched and to squat, such was the procedure. But for some reason one officer treated me well, he took me to a cell; there was the man who wanted to dip me in a puddle there. He asked if I needed to be searched. And to my surprise, the investigator who brought me in said, “No, he has already been searched, he can go to the cell.” I don’t know why he acted that way. I think he quit this job later; you could see in his eyes that he understood what was going on. 

“Someone behind me shouted, “Kick him in the balls again, he’ll come to his senses”      
 

It was very stuffy in the cell, and the air ventilation system didn’t work. There were a lot of people there together with Dmitry. He does not remember the exact number. At some point, he felt unwell, leaned against the wall, and began to lose consciousness. 

“All I remember was being slapped on the cheeks by my inmates, one of them was giving me CPR. When I regained consciousness, I was lying in the corridor, my crotch was hurting very badly, someone behind me shouted, “Kick him in the balls again, he’ll come to his senses.” Apparently, they had hit me between the legs, but they did not hit my genitals; only the inner surface of my thigh hurt.”
 

Someone on the staff called an ambulance for Dmitry. The paramedics came, checked his cardiogram, and said that his heart was fine, but his blood pressure was not – Hypertensive emergency. 
“The doctor really fought for me, but they didn’t want to let me go. The doctor said that he could take me away only if I signed a waiver of hospitalization, which would mean that medics were not responsible for me. I felt very unwell, so I signed that paper. There was also a document which said that if I were detained again, they would charge me with criminal offence. They made me sign all those documents, otherwise they would not let me out.” 
 

The police returned my wallet, keys, and my phone; they didn’t give my cigarettes back. Outside the police department, there were a lot of people – parents; they were crying and asking me if I had seen their girls and boys inside. I wanted to talk to them, but I had no strength.” 

Almost every morning I wake up in a stupor and unable to move. I roll down to the floor and start doing push-ups 

Dmitry was taken to Hospital No. 1. He was given a lot of pills in the ambulance, but they didn’t help.
 
“While I was waiting in the hospital for my turn to be seen by a doctor, they started to bring injured people in. I let them see the doctor before me because those guys needed medical help right away. I saw one guy and thought that he was wearing maroon pants, but when I took a closer look, I realized that his pants were light-colored, but were completely soaked in blood.
  
So, I decided to leave. No one was looking after me anymore. I went outside, not knowing where I was. I saw a metro station and found some coins in my pocket. I don’t think that paper money was stolen from me, rather, it fell out of my pocket somewhere. When I got home, I felt very sick, I was terribly weak and there was such bad ringing in my ears that I could not sleep. After that, my panic attacks resumed. I am now being treated by a psychotherapist, I must take Rexetin (an antidepressant) and Clozapine (a neuroleptic). Almost every morning I wake up in a stupor and unable to move. I roll down to the floor and start doing push-ups.”   

“My mom voted for Lukashenko, but I don’t blame her at all”

“On August 11, I consulted a lawyer I know and decided to file a complaint against the security forces. I went to Pervomaysky District Internal Affairs Department; the officer smiled and said that if he passed this information on to someone, I wouldn’t get out of there. I understood everything and left. Then, a few days later, I went to the bathhouse, and when I came back home, I saw that my car had a broken headlight. My neighbors said that some people came in a minivan. Actually, no one could know where I live because I only mentioned it to the police during the registration after my arrest. Officially, I am registered at another place.”  

Dmitry did not contact the police regarding his damaged car. He replaced the headlight, sold the car, and left Minsk for Osipovichi. Volunteers contacted him and offered psychological help, but by then he was already in therapy. He turned to a professional psychotherapist because he already had a similar experience. 
 

He is temporarily out of work. He decided to quit his job not to cause problems for his coworkers. But his boss says that he will take him back as soon as Dmitry wants to return.

“My mom voted for Lukashenko, but I don’t blame her at all. Back then, she thought that things would get worse without him. Now, she is an ardent opponent of the regime, and she regrets she voted that way. But I try to comfort her and tell her that she is not to blame for anything.”
P.S. Dmitry did not complain to the Investigative Committee. He called the Central District Internal Affairs Department to make arrangements to get back his passport, but he was told, “Oh, it’s you! Come over, we’ll shove your passport up your ass.” Eventually, Dmitry’s passport was collected by his friend who he studied at the military academy with. 

*August2020 thanks The International Committee for the Investigation of Torture in Belarus for help in preparing the material.

If you have suffered during peaceful demonstrations and are ready to tell your story, write to us at avgust2020belarus@gmail.com with the note “History”. We will contact you. thanks

Dmitry Barabanov,a manager
Age: 40 years old
City: Minsk
When: 10.08.2020

Dmitry was detained on the morning of August 10 in Minsk downtown

Held in custody: 1 day in Central District Internal Affairs Department (Central RUVD)
Medical diagnosis: Hypertension crisis, loss of consciousness, bruises
Aftermath: Nervous breakdowns, panic attacks, counselling with a psychotherapist