The Human Rights Center “Viasna”

News for 14 Nov 2007

14.11.2007 Mahiliou: Does Belarusian TV Prepare New Film about Opposition?

On 13 November the shooting crew of the Belarusian TV consisting of a cameraman Vasil Lasenkou and a journalist Alena Bardzikouskaya wanted to take an interview from a student of Mahiliou State University. However, the methods of their work arise some questions.

14.11.2007 Police Return ‘Tovarishch’ Circulation 45 Days after Confiscation

On 13 November the police returned an issue of the non-state newspaper ‘Tovarishch’ (printed organ of the Party of Communists of Belarus) to its chief editor Siarhei Vazniak. The newspapers were taken away from the newspaper’s editorial office on 27 September.

14.11.2007 Human Rights Activists Demand to Abolish Forced State Assignment of Graduates

This year 65 criminal cases have been brought against the high school graduates who failed to get to the places of work assignment. The present legislation treats such behavior as evasion from duties and demands from the people to pay off the costs that had been already spent by the state for their education. The numbers differ, but in general it is about 3-5 thousand US dollars, the average wage being about 200 dollars.

14.11.2007 Yaraslau Hryshchenia Fired

On 13 November the director of Baranavichy Culture house of railway workers phoned to the youth activist Yaraslau Hryshchenia and told that he was fired.

14.11.2007 Olof Palme Center Representative Not Let in Belarus

In the night of 11-12 November the border guards of Minsk airport without any explanations didn’t allow a representative of Olof Palme International Center in Stockholm, Natasha Alekseyeva to enter Belarus.

14.11.2007 Aliaksandr Kazulin’s Case Submitted to PACE

On 13 November in the framework of the international campaign of solidarity with the political prisoner Aliaksandr Kazulin an address to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe was sent. As said by the former lawyer of the convicted politician, Ihar Rynkevich, the document had been prepared by the public commission ‘Free Kazulin!’

14.11.2007 Farce: Political Prisoner Klimau’s Foodstuffs ‘Checked’ for More than a Month

Only recently has the political prisoner Andrei Klimau received the foodstuffs, which were taken away for a ‘check-up’ in early October, as soon as he was guarded to Mozyr colony. The information about the return of the foodstuffs to the prisoner was voiced by Yury Barankau, the acting head of the Department of serving punishment.

14.11.2007 Representative of Belarusian People’s Republic Died

Belarusian People’s Republic was declared by the Belarusian democratic intellectuals in 1918, short before the Bolshevik’s turned the country into a Soviet republic. The Communists did not recognize Belarusian People’s Republic. The BPF government had to escape abroad.