Swiss Court Convicts Former Belarusian Officer for Kidnapping Opponent of Lukashenko
A Swiss tribunal found ex-Belarus security officer Yuri Harauski guilty of abducting businessman Anatoly Krasovsky, an opponent of President Alexander Lukashenko, and sentenced him to two years’ probation.
In a landmark decision, a Swiss court in St Gallen sentenced former Belarusian security officer Yuri Harauski to two years of probation after finding him guilty of the 1999 abduction of Anatoly Krasovsky, a known critic of President Alexander Lukashenko. Harauski, who admitted involvement in multiple kidnappings while serving in the SOBR special police unit, was cleared of charges related to former interior minister Yuri Zakharenko because the court could not establish his intent.
The judgment follows successful appeals by the daughters of both victims and is the first worldwide conviction of a Belarusian security force member, applying the principle of universal jurisdiction to enforced disappearance cases. Rights organization Trial International and the victims’ families described the outcome as a partial victory and a closure of an accountability gap. The ruling could be appealed once more to Switzerland’s Federal Supreme Court. No comment was provided by Harauski’s lawyer.
Why it matters
It sets a precedent for holding foreign security officials accountable for human-rights abuses under universal jurisdiction.
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