Belarusian opposition figure Maria Kolesnikova, who is suspected of making calls to seize power, is being questioned in a pre-trial detention facility in Minsk, the team of former presidential contender Viktor Babariko said on Thursday
MINSK (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th September, 2020) Belarusian opposition figure Maria Kolesnikova, who is suspected of making calls to seize power, is being questioned in a pre-trial detention facility in Minsk, the team of former presidential contender Viktor Babariko said on Thursday.
"At 10:00 a.m. (7:00 GMT), Maria Kolesnikova's questioning began in a pre-trial detention facility," Babariko's team wrote on the Telegram channel.
Kolesnikova was reported missing earlier in the week, and media reports emerged claiming that she was detained at the Belarusian-Ukrainian border. Belarusian authorities later stated that Kolesnikova and two of her allies from the opposition Coordination Council had passed Belarusian border control, but later the senior opposition figure was thrown out of a car at the Ukrainian border by her own associates, who managed to cross into the neighboring country.
According to the Babariko team, Kolesnikova "views the events of recent days as a kidnapping" and wants to bring to account those responsible for her "abduction" and attempt to "smuggle" her abroad.
The opposition politician's lawyers will also request forensics over bruises that Kolesnikova received during the detention. The senior Coordination Council member has already appealed to the investigative committee over threats she received from law enforcement officers during her detention.
"These persons threatened to take my life, threats which were perceived by me as real. In particular, they claimed that if I did not voluntarily leave the territory of the Republic of Belarus, I would be taken out anyway: alive or in parts. There were also threats to imprison me for up to 25 years," her appeal, circulated in media, said.
According to Kolesnikova, they tried to smuggle her to Ukraine with a bag over her head, but she thwarted their plans by tearing apart her passport.
The Coordination Council of Belarus was set up by the opposition members who reject the results of the August 9 election, which was won by President Alexander Lukashenko. State prosecutors have launched a criminal case over the body's creation.
