Hienadz Shutau ( be, Генадзь Шутаў, russian: Геннадий Шутов; 25 November 1975 – August 19, 2020,
Minsk
Minsk ( be, Мінск ; russian: Минск) is the capital and the largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach and the now subterranean Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the admi ...
) was a participant in protests against fraud in the
2020 Belarusian presidential election. He is the third officially recognized victim of the 9–12 August 2020
crackdown
Crackdown may refer to
* ''Crackdown'' (web series)
* ''Crackdown'' (video game series)
** ''Crackdown'' (video game)
** ''Crackdown 2
''Crackdown 2'' is an open world action-adventure video game developed by Ruffian Games and published by ...
and the first from a firearm.
Death
According to the
Militsiya
''Militsiya'' ( rus, милиция, , mʲɪˈlʲitsɨjə) was the name of the police forces in the Soviet Union (until 1991) and in several Eastern Bloc countries (1945–1992), as well as in the non-aligned SFR Yugoslavia (1945–1992). The ...
, on the evening of August 11, 2020, Hienadz Shutau and another man attacked police officers in Brest near the Moskovsky district administration, beat them with a metal pipe, and tried to take away their weapons. One of the militiamen, fearing for his life, shot the attacker in the shoulder, but because of his resistance "accidentally wounded him in the head". The wounded man was taken to a hospital. On August 13, 2020, he was transferred to the hospital of the
Ministry of Defense
{{unsourced, date=February 2021
A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...
in
critical condition
Medical state is a term used to describe a hospital patient's health status, or condition. The term is most commonly used in information given to the news media, and is rarely used as a clinical description by physicians.
Two aspects of the patien ...
, where he died on August 19, 2020, at 10:20. Investigators promise to give a "legal assessment" of the actions of the attackers and the legality of the use of weapons.
Shutau's daughter Anastasia told the media another version, "He called that he was going home, and since then we have been looking for him for two days and could not find him. His phone was unavailable... The father was shot from behind at close range, the shooter was behind him. There were very severe brain damage, intense bleeding, broken apart bones."
A woman who lives near the murder site said she heard three shots and went out onto the balcony, where she saw a man lying in a pool of blood and a young man in civilian clothes walking away from him. "He went up to him, tried to kick him, but when he saw blood, he started to panic, he called his guys. One of them ran up and began to hold his head, neck, apparently to stop bleeding. And this young man, who was shooting, went up to the bench and called an ambulance. He was very tense, nervous, even shouted. People here tried to approach him, but he would not let them. He swore at them. Then other guys came here, I think they were his people because he would not let others. Then an ambulance was called for the second time so that it could arrive faster. It is possible that the ambulance found out how the gunshot wound occurred. In the end, he said that he was attacked and it was in self-defense. At this time, people came up and began to photograph him. He began to hide behind his shirt, took out a pistol and began to direct the weapon at people, sending them away. People reacted quite aggressively to this. And that's understandable." The witness also noted that the shot was fired in the back of the head since the man was lying face down on the ground.
The certificate on the death of Shutau says that it was caused by traumatic
cerebral edema
Cerebral edema is excess accumulation of fluid (edema) in the intracellular or extracellular spaces of the brain. This typically causes impaired nerve function, increased pressure within the skull, and can eventually lead to direct compressio ...
. In the column "external cause of death", the code Y22 is indicated − in the
international classification of diseases
The International Classification of Diseases (ICD) is a globally used diagnostic tool for epidemiology, health management and clinical purposes. The ICD is maintained by the World Health Organization (WHO), which is the directing and coordinating ...
, it stands for "injury as a result of a shot from a handgun with undetermined intentions".
On September 21, a video from a camera at the entrance of house 334 on Moskovskaya Street in
Brest
Brest may refer to:
Places
*Brest, Belarus
**Brest Region
**Brest Airport
**Brest Fortress
* Brest, Kyustendil Province, Bulgaria
* Břest, Czech Republic
*Brest, France
** Arrondissement of Brest
**Brest Bretagne Airport
** Château de Brest
*Br ...
, under the windows of which on August 11 one of the "
tihars" in civilian clothes shot Hienadz Shutau in the back of the head, was published by
MediaZona. This recording confirms that the official version of the Investigative Committee that the biker and his friend, with metal pipes in their hands, attacked the police and tried to take away their weapons, is fake. In the hands of Shutau and his friend Kardziukou, there were no fittings or metal pipes, and there were no warning shots upward from the security forces either. They also did not attack the "tihars", but they themselves approached them.
On October 6, at a meeting with
Brest State Technical University
Brest State Technical University s situated in Brest, Belarus. It began as Brest State Civil Engineering Institute on April 1, 1966, that was reorganized into Brest State Polytechnic Institute in 1989 and eventually into a university in 2000.
...
students, the prosecutor of the
Brest Region
Brest Region or Brest Oblast or Brest Voblasts ( be, Брэ́сцкая во́бласць ''(Bresckaja vobłasć)''; russian: Бре́стская о́бласть (''Brestskaya Oblast)'') is one of the regions of Belarus. Its administrative cen ...
Viktor Klimov refused to share the results of the investigation, citing the secrecy of the inquest.
As the newspaper "
Brestskaya Gazeta" wrote, Aliaksandr Kardziukou, the only witness of the murder of Shutau, was detained on August 13 and has not been in contact since then.
At the end of the first decade of November 2020, the relatives of the murdered man received a response from the
Investigative Committee of Belarus
The Investigative Committee of Belarus ( be, Следчы камітэт Рэспублікі Беларусь; ) is a preliminary inquiry body that reports to the President of Belarus.
International sanctions
In August 2020, the chairman of the I ...
that there are "no grounds" for opening a criminal case upon the murder.
As of December, 28, 2020, no criminal case was opened on the killing of Shutau itself, while the Investigative Committee has still not closed the case against Shutau on resistance to law enforcement officers. At the same time, Aliaksandr Kardziukou, the witness of the murder of Shutau that was arrested and initially accused of resistance to a police officer, became accused of
attempted murder
Attempted murder is a crime of attempt in various jurisdictions.
Canada
Section 239 of the ''Criminal Code'' makes attempted murder punishable by a maximum of life imprisonment. If a gun is used, the minimum sentence is four, five or seven ye ...
. Why the article was changed was not explained but Kardziukou's sister thought that it could be made to fully acquit those who fired.
Court
On February 2, 2021, it became known that Aliaksandr Kardziukou would be charged with attempted murder, while a criminal case on the murder of Henads Schutau was not underway.
In the Kardziukou's court session on February 16, 2021, it turned out that on August 11, 2020, on Moskovskaya Street in Brest, a serviceman of the
5th Spetsnaz Brigade
The 5th Spetsnaz Brigade () is a special forces brigade of the Armed Forces of Belarus, formerly part of the Soviet Spetsnaz GRU.
History
It was formed at Marjina Horka, Minsk Region, 1 January 1963 as the 5th Special Forces Brigade GRU. It ini ...
,
Captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
Roman Gavrilov, who was in civilian clothes and carried a
Makarov pistol
The Makarov pistol or PM ( rus, Пистоле́т Мака́рова, r=Pistolét Makárova, p=pʲɪstɐˈlʲet mɐˈkarəvə, t=Makarov's Pistol) is a Soviet semi-automatic pistol. Under the project leadership of Nikolay Fyodorovich Makarov, it ...
, shot at the back of Shutau's head.
On February 25, 2021, the Brest Regional Court (judge Svetlana Kremenovskaya) found Shutau guilty of resistance with the use of violence, Kardziukou was found guilty of attempted murder by her on top of that.
The killed Shutau was returned a guilty verdict without sentencing, while Kardziukou was sentenced to 10 years in a strengthened regime penitentiary, as requested by the state prosecutor Gennady Bury. The victims were named servicemen of the 5th Spetsnaz Brigade Roman Gavrilov and
Praporshchik
( rus, Пра́порщик, 3=ˈprapərɕːɪk, ) is a rank used by the Russian Armed Forces and a number of former communist states. The rank is a non-commissioned officer's and is equivalent to in navies. It is usually equivalent to Warrant ...
Arseniy Golitsyn, who fired at both to kill.
Close relatives of Shutau and Kardziukou called the verdict absurd and questioned the honesty of the trial.
Brest human rights activist Raman Kislyak echoed them, calling the court "a screen of punitive tasks" because it did not meet the criteria of impartiality and independence, and the case itself was conducted for the sake of protecting the servicemen from a fair trial.
On May 14, 2021, the
Supreme Court of Belarus upheld the earlier judgments on the murdered Shutau and Kardziukou. According to Raman Kislyak, the Supreme Court failed to meet the criterion of independence when examining the appeal too, as the entire hearing was intended to exempt the military officers from punishment for murder and use of weapons.
Funeral
On August 20, 2020, the daughter of the perished reported that her father's body had not been returned to relatives, so the date of the funeral was still unknown. The relatives wanted to bury Hienadz Shutau in
Zhabinka since his mother lived there. He was buried there on August 24.
Personal life
Hienadz Shutau was married, had five children and one grandchild.
Reactions
On September 17, 2020, the European Parliament, in a resolution approved by an absolute majority of MPs, called for an "independent and effective investigation" of the death of Hienadz Shutau related to the protests.
On November 19, 2020, residents of Brest recorded a video message in connection with the escalation of violence in Belarus, among other things, draw the attention of the authorities to the need to investigate the murder of Hienadz Shutau so that the perpetrators would be punished in accordance with the law. On November 26, 2020, the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
, in a resolution approved by an absolute majority of MPs, called for a "prompt, thorough, impartial, and independent investigation" into the killings during protests in Belarus, including Hienadz Shutau, thus supported the initiative of Brest residents.
On February 25, 2021,
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya
Sviatlana Heorhiyeuna Tsikhanouskaya (' Pilipchuk;, , ; russian: Светлана Георгиевна Тихановская, , Svetlana Georgiyevna Tikhanovskaya, , , born 11 September 1982) is a Belarusian educator and the leader of the Bel ...
weighed in on the court decision taking the side of the media and activists that thought that charges were trumped up as part of a crackdown to keep President
Alexander Lukashenko
Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko (as transliterated from Russian language, Russian; also transliterated from Belarusian language, Belarusian as Alyaksand(a)r Ryhoravich Lukashenka;, ; rus, Александр Григорьевич Лука ...
in power, "A peaceful protester Henadz Shutau was shot dead by siloviki (security forces) in plain clothes last Aug. His friend Aliaksandr Kardziukou witnessed it and ran away. Today, a court sentenced Kardziukou to 10 years in prison. Murdered Shutau was called guilty, and his murderer was called a victim."
Aksana Kolb, editor-in-chief of
Novy Chas
''Novy Chas'' ( be, Новы Час; ''New Time'' in English) is an independent weekly newspaper published in Belarus.
History and profile
''Novy Chas'' was established on 1 March 2007 as a successor to '' Zgoda'' which was shut down in 2007. Th ...
, wrote, "Aliaksandr Kardziukou, a friend of Hienadz Shutau who witnessed the murder, got ten years. Moreover, Hienadz himself was found guilty. It is a pity that they have not yet learned how to throw the dead ones behind bars...." "The victim was turned into a criminal," human rights activist
Ales Bialiatski
Ales Viktaravich Bialiatski ( be, Алесь Віктаравіч Бяляцкі, Alieś Viktaravič Bialiacki; born 25 September 1962) is a Belarusian pro-democracy activist and prisoner of conscience known for his work with the Viasna Human ...
commented on the verdict.
Viasna Human Rights Centre
On May 6, 2021, experts and analysts of the
Viasna Human Rights Centre
The Viasna Human Rights Centre ( be, Праваабарончы цэнтр «Вясна», Pravaabarončy centr «Viasna») is a human rights organization based in Minsk, Belarus. The organization aims to provide financial and legal assistance to ...
published a conclusion on the criminal case of Hienadz Shutau and Aliaksandr Kardziukou.
Viasna's lawyers concluded that by bringing in the
Special Forces of Belarus )''Anywhere, anytime, any task'' (alternative)
, battles = United Nations Interim Force in LebanonLibyan Civil War (2011) 2020 Belarusian protests
, commander1 = Major General Vadim Denisenko
, commander1 ...
to suppress the protests, there were violations of the law (Article 3 of the Law "On the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus", Articles 16 and 17 of the Law "On the State of Emergency" in particular), while the secret unpublished decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus No. 99-c "On Approval of the Regulations on the State System of Response to Acts of Terrorism, Activities of Terrorist Organizations, Illegal Armed Formations and Mass Riots" "cannot be important for assessing the legitimacy of mutual actions of citizens and military personnel and cannot be the basis for imposing duties on citizens or restricting their rights."
The experts also referred to their previous statements, according to which there were no riots in Belarus after the presidential elections in August 2020, but predominantly peaceful protests, the participants of which were unjustifiably subjected to ill-treatment and torture, took place; there were no regimes of martial law or a
state of emergency
A state of emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to be able to put through policies that it would normally not be permitted to do, for the safety and protection of its citizens. A government can declare such a state du ...
, there was not an armed conflict, either.
According to the Viasna experts, the illegality and groundlessness of the verdict are based on the Aliaksandr Kardziukou’s absence of intent to kill, since “even by the verdict passed, the fact that Kardziukou hit the victim Gavrilov with a pipe on the head is not enough to come to a conclusion about the intention to kill the victim,” while there were no other pieces of evidence that Kardziukou wanted to kill Gavrilov, which excludes the conclusion of direct intent (besides, there can be no attempted murder with indirect intent), as well as on the absence of convincing shreds of evidence of a blow to the head of the victim Roman Gavrilov because three other versions of his injuries at another time and in other circumstances were documented, which were biasedly assessed by the court in violation of the
presumption of innocence
The presumption of innocence is a legal principle that every person accused of any crime is considered innocent until proven guilty. Under the presumption of innocence, the legal burden of proof is thus on the prosecution, which must present com ...
of Kardziukou.
The direct interest of Roman Gavrilov and Arseniy Golitsyn (after investigating whose actions the Investigative Committee refused to initiate a criminal case in connection with causing the death of Hienadz Shutau) in the outcome of the trial could lead to the manipulation of evidence “to substantiate the legality of Gavrilov’s actions, who, from various options to counteract Shutau’s resistance, chose a shot in his torso with a hit in the back of the head, and Golitsyn, who with a warning shot from a pistol endangered the life and health of people in the apartment, where a bullet hit the ceiling, breaking through the glass.”
Gavrilov’s defense of the legality of his actions was based on the fact that his shot in the back of Shutau’s head was preceded by an unexpected blow to the head by Kardziukou, which made it impossible for him to overcome Shutau’s resistance (who, according to Gavrilov, hugged his legs, but, according to Kardziukou, was on his knees with raised hands back to Gavrilov).
At the same time, Gavrilov’s injuries approximately corresponded to the circumstance of using the pipe shown by Kardziukou: after falling from the bench, which Kardziukou connected with the actions of Gavrilov and Golitsyn, he hit one of them with a pipe in the thigh, so that the scratch on Gavrilov’s left forearm which was placed at the level of the hips when the person's hands are lowered could be the result of blocking the blow to the thigh with the hand.
In addition, Golitsyn concealed his fall during the pursuit of Kardziukou during the preliminary investigation, and the soldier’s bodily injuries found, according to the forensic expert, could have occurred when falling from a height of his own height, but Golitsyn argued that Kardziukou caused him damage by throwing a pipe what allowed him to become a victim too to justify the shooting in peacetime.
According to Article 23 of the Law of the Republic of Belarus "On the Status of Servicemen,” servicemen are obliged to "always be in uniform, clean and neatly dressed", while Gavrilov and Golitsyn were of athletic build with belt bags in civilian clothes and caps, stuck together, and just a single look at them at the intersection, according to the court, allowed Shutau and Kardziukou to understand that they were "not just citizens present but on duty to protect public order" to qualify a crime.
But the fact that Gavrilov and Golitsyn themselves
mimicked protesters by clapping their hands, running away when the
Militsiya
''Militsiya'' ( rus, милиция, , mʲɪˈlʲitsɨjə) was the name of the police forces in the Soviet Union (until 1991) and in several Eastern Bloc countries (1945–1992), as well as in the non-aligned SFR Yugoslavia (1945–1992). The ...
was approaching, and such, according to the Viasna experts, could not allow them to be identified as special subjects of the crime.
In addition, the court did not indicate in its decision that the shouts of the victims “Face down, bastards, I’ll murder you!”, “Lie face down on the floor, minger”, shooting in the air, the ceiling of the kitchen of the neighboring house, and the back of Shutau's head were called upon to strengthen such confidence.
Kardziukou assured that he hit Gavrilov on the thigh not in connection with caring out duties to protect public order by him but instinctively, because “he received a blow (or thought that he received a blow)” from the latter.
In addition, the victims did not present any claims for violation of public order to the accused, just as did not present such claims in a lawful form even after the conflict.
Based on that conclusion, on May 7, 2021, by a joint statement of seven organizations, including the Viasna Human Rights Centre, the
Belarusian Helsinki Committee
The Belarusian Helsinki Committee (BHC; ) is a non-governmental human rights organization established in 1995 and in 2007 was the sole remaining independent human rights group in Belarus, apart from Viasna Human Rights Centre. Its goal is protectio ...
, Aliaksandr Kardziukou was recognized as a
political prisoner
A political prisoner is someone imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for the prisoner's detention.
There is no internationally recognized legal definition of the concept, although n ...
. On June 23, 2021, godparenthood for Aliaksandr Kardziukou was undertaken by
Elisabeth Falkhaven,
Member of Parliament of Sweden.
See also
*
Alexander Taraikovsky
Alexander Taraikovsky ( be, Аляксандр Тарайкоўскі; 26 March 1986 – 10 August 2020) was a demonstrator who died in Minsk, Belarus, during the 2020 Belarusian protests in which the police used tear gas, rubber bullets, and ...
*
Raman Bandarenka
Raman Bandarenka ( be, Раман Бандарэнка) (August 1, 1989, Minsk – November 12, 2020, Minsk) was an aspiring Belarusian designer, and shop manager. His death is associated with the protests against the 2020 Belarusian presidential ...
*
List of deaths related to the 2020 Belarusian protests
References
External links
Video of the zachistka when Hienadz Shutau was wounded Radio Racyja
The murder of Hienadz Shutau in Brest. What we learned from CCTV footage MediaZona
Conclusion of experts and analysts of the Viasna Human Rights Centre on the criminal case against Aliaksandr Kardziukou and Hienadz ShutauMan, who was shot at rally by law enforcers died in MinskMan shot by police at Brest protest dies in hospital at age 44GENNADY SHUTOV SHOT AND KILLED BY A POLICE OFFICERBelarusians mourn the death of young opposition supporter*
ttps://www.urdupoint.com/en/miscellaneous/belarus-confirms-death-of-man-family-says-was-1005638.html Belarus Confirms Death Of Man Family Says Was Shot At Protestbr>
Belarus: Protests rage on as death count begins to climbMan Dies After Being Shot By Police During Peaceful Protests In Brest
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shutov, Gennady, Shooting of
2020 deaths
Deaths by firearm
2020–2021 Belarusian protests