The Pre-Trial Detention Centre of the KGB of Belarus (Belarusian: Следчы ізалятар КДБ Беларусі, romanized: Sledčy izaliatar KDB Bielarusi; Russian: Следственный изолятор КГБ Республики Беларусь, romanized: Sledstvenny izolyator KGB Respubliki Belarus, СИЗО КГБ, SIZO KGB, also informally called Amerikanka (Belarusian: Амерыканка, romanized: Amierykanka, lit. 'American'; Russian: Американка) is a pre-trial prison in the centre of Minsk, operated by the KGB of Belarus.
 | |
| Coordinates | 53°53′55.619″N 27°33′12.272″E / 53.89878306°N 27.55340889°E |
|---|---|
| Security class | Pre-Trial Detention Centre (SIZO) |
| Opened | 1920s |
| Former name | Internal prison of the NKVD |
| Managed by | KGB (Belarus) |
| City | Minsk |
| Country | Belarus |
The prison is used for detaining persons against whom investigation is being carried out by the KGB of Belarus, in particular, in cases where state interests are involved.
History
editThe prison firstly operated as the internal prison of the Soviet secret police, the Cheka. It was constructed in the 1920s as part of a complex of buildings used by the Cheka. The informal name Amerikanka is believed to be referring to the prison's form as a Panopticon, based on the design of prisons in the United States.[1][2]
The building was later used by the Cheka's successor organizations, the NKVD and the KGB.
In 1946, after end of World War II and the restoration of Soviet control over Belarus, the building was reconstructed.[3]
Sanctions against Amerikanka prison staff
editFollowing the crackdown of the protests of the democratic opposition after the allegedly falsified presidential election in 2010, several KGB officers were put on the sanctions list of the European Union.[4][5] The sanctions were lifted in 2016 following an improvement of the Belarus–European Union relations.
- Colonel Alexandr Vladimirovich Orlov, head of the Amerikanka: according to the EU, he was personally responsible for "cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment of detainees" in the weeks and months after the crackdown on the protests in Minsk on 19 December 2010, on the eve of the 2010 presidential election. He has been on the EU sanctions list between 2011 and 2016
- Colonel Oleg Anatolyevich Chernyshev; he allegedly personally participated in tortures of opposition activists in the Amerikanka in Minsk after the crackdown on the post-election protest demonstration in Minsk on 19 December 2010
- Lieutenant-Colonel Dmitri Vyacheslavovich Sukhov, an operative of the military counter-intelligence of the KGB; accused of falsifying evidence and using threats in order to extort confessions from detained opposition activists in the Amerikanka in Minsk after the crackdown on the post-election protest demonstration in Minsk on 19 December 2010
Notable prisoners
editVictims of Soviet repressions
edit- Barys Rahula, pro-independence activist from West Belarus, future Vice-President of the Rada of the Belarusian Democratic Republic in exile
- Over 130 victims of 1937 mass execution of Belarusians, including
- Polish citizens arrested after the Soviet invasion of Poland in 1939
- Kazimierz Świątek
- Ernst Sabila[6]
Political opponents of president Alexander Lukashenko
edit2010 presidential candidates
editOpposition leaders and activists
editJournalists
edit2020 presidential candidate nominees and campaigners
edit- Viktar Babaryka and his son and campaigner Eduard Babaryka
- Syarhei Tsikhanouski
Artists
edit- Slavamir Adamovich – convicted of inciting illegal change of power, illegally crossing the state border, and illegally carrying a melee weapon.[8]
Foreigners
edit- Vladislav Baumgertner, CEO of Uralkali
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Володин, Михаил (17 June 2013). "Призрак в центре города, или Американская историйка" (in Russian). Tvoya Stolitsa. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
- ^ Прудникова, Ольга (28 January 2011). "Досье на "американку". Как живется узникам КГБ". naviny.by. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
- ^ Khalip, Iryna (10 August 2011). "Ах, шарабан мой, "американка"!". Novaya Gazeta. Charter 97. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
- ^ Поўны спіс 208 беларускіх чыноўнікаў, якім забаронены ўезд у ЕС - Nasha Niva, 11.10.2011
- ^ Council Decision 2012/642/CFSP of 15 October 2012 concerning restrictive measures against Belarus
- ^ Сабіла Эрнст - slounik.org
- ^ "Dzianis Urad — Political prisoners in Belarus". prisoners.spring96.org. Retrieved 2021-05-18.
- ^ Малевіч, Марына (2010-11-23). "Славамір Адамовіч. Непатрэбны паэт". Narodnaja Wola (in Belarusian). 184–185 (3314–3315). Minsk. ISSN 2071-9647. Archived from the original on 2018-05-05.