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Belarusian ex-presidential candidate released from jail

29 January 2011 20:59 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Belarusian ex-presidential candidate Vladimir Neklyaev and another opposition member have been freed from jail, his lawyer said on Saturday, APA reports quoting RIA Novosti.

Neklyaev and several other former candidates were detained in mid-December over participation in unsanctioned post-election rally in Minsk and accused of organizing mass riots.

The opposition activist suffered a hypertensive crisis in the pretrial detention center where he was kept and filed an appeal against his detention after the court had refused to release him.

Irina Khalip, a journalist for the Belarusian Novaya Gazeta and wife of another opposition candidate, Andrei Sannikov, was also released on Saturday. Police placed her under house arrest.

Other opposition candidates Vitaly Rymashevsky and Grigory Kostusev were released from custody in early January but placed under a restraining order preventing them from leaving the city.

More than 600 protesters including eleven Russians were detained following the protests, which were sparked after President Alexander Lukashenko won a landslide to secure a fourth term in office. The opposition alleged vote rigging.

Police dispersed the demonstration when the crowd tried to storm parliament following the announcement of election results.