Ivan Kaniaveha
entrepreneur, sentenced to 3 years in prison
Former prisoner
Date of birth: 29 April 1978
Date of detention: 17 December 2020
Charges indicted:
- Art. 342 of the Criminal Code — Organization and preparation of actions that grossly violate public order, or active participation in them
- Art. 364 of the Criminal Code — Violence or threat of violence against an employee of the internal affairs bodies
- Art. 218 of the Criminal Code — Intentional destruction or damage to property committed in a generally dangerous manner or causing damage on a large scale
Sentence: 3 years
Penalty: imprisonment in a general-security penal colony
Date of release: 22 October 2023
Judge: Katsiaryna Murashka
Groups: Activists, Businessmen, Cultural workers
Cases: Protests in Minsk
Statement on the status of a political prisoner
Godparent: Jean-Yves Leconte, Member of the French Senate
Ivan Kaniaveha is an entrepreneur, director of the Horse & Vega concert agency, business analyst and SEO optimization specialist. Ivan collaborated with the NGO "Good Deed" (helping children with autism), UNISEF and other NGOs and charities.
Ivan Kaniaveha was initially detained after a protest in August, and detained again on December 17. He has been in custody since then. He was charged under three articles of the Criminal Code for his involvement in the August 9 protests: under Part 1 of Art. 342 of the Criminal Code (Active participation in group actions that grossly violate public order), Art. 364 of the Criminal Code (Violence against police officers), and Part 1 of Art. 218 of the Criminal Code (Deliberate destruction or damage to property). In fact, he was accused of hitting a road police car when it was trying to drive through a crowd of protesters. Ivan explained this by fearing that the car would run into the crowd at high speed. He did not admit his guilt, but compensated the alleged moral and material damage to the victims.
On February 4, 2021, Judge Katsiaryna Murashka of the Zavodski District Court of Minsk sentenced Ivan Kaniaveha to 3 years in a general-security penal colony.
