Andrej Poczobut, a Belarusian and Polish journalist, who served a sentence in Grodno prison comments on the authoritie’s decision to transfer Zmicer Dashkievich to this prison. „They have sent Dashkevich to the worse prison possible” – noted journalist.

“Grodno prison consists of two divisions. The first is a remand center, the second is a special discipline unit. The prison is old, it is clear that it does not correspond to European standards” – said Mr. Poczobut, correspondent of the Polish “Gazeta Wyborcza”, sentenced for insulting Lukashenka.

As Mr. Poczobut added, the prison administration may decide about Dashkievich’s prison conditions:

“One can create various conditions – a man can be imprisoned into a dark cell but there are also a bit better and brighter cells. The administration decides where to put the prisoner and with what kind of cell mates. It is clear, that Zmitser will stay in a tiny cell, where there will be 8-10 people (if the cell is better – up to 4).”

Grodno prison is the last place to which Dashkievich could be sent, as the journalist said:

“In Grodno prison are imprisoned people who have a conflict with the administration, or persons who have been convicted of serious crimes. If the prisoner is problematic he will be finally transferred to the prison in Grodno. This is the last and the worst place  to which one can send a prisoner. ”

“It’s hard to predict in what kind of conditions Zmitser Dashkevich will serve his sentence. When I served there my sentence the administration obeyed all the rules. I’ve heard that even  Mykola Autukhovich have now similar conditions. But I would not want to predict anything when it comes to the leader of the “Young Front”, Zmitser Dashkevich. People who will decide about the fate of Dashkevich, will probably read that. ”

Poczobut hopes that Dashkievich will not have such problems in Grodno, as he had in the colony in Mazyr:

“The situation of Dashkevich have to be carefully monitored. Taking into account what has happened to him, there are suspicions that he may have  additional problems. I would like to believe that after all the authorities will stop to harass, insult and demean him, as it was the case in Mozyr colony.”