Belarus Opposition Leader Jailed
27 April 2006

Former presidential candidate Aleksandr Milinkevich was arrested and jailed on April 27, one day after attending a rally commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster and protesting the authoritarian government of Lukashenko.  Three other leaders of opposition parties were arrested on Wednesday and Thursday as well.  The New York Times quotes Milinkevich as having stated at his sentencing, “This is a political action, a political sentence.  Leaders of leading political parties are behind bars.”

The Times reported that a State Department official suggested that the US might take further punitive measures against Belarus.