Homel Regional Court Rejects Suit of “Civil Alternative” Founders

According to RFE/RL, on 11 May Homel Regional Court considered the suit of the leaders of the association “Civil Alternative” to the justice board that refused to register it. More than 200 citizens of the region were founders of the association. Most of them were members of the liquidated “Civil Initiatives”.

At the trial the representatives of the justice board Tamara Stryzhneva and Andrey Mitskevich couldn’t explain why the norms of the statute of “Civil Initiatives” that were similar to those of the official “Belarusian Republican Youth Union” were illegal.

The plaintiff and the head of the unregistered association Uladzimir Katsora considers the refusal to register it as politically motivated.

(Katsora): “The arguments on the justice board workers are grounded on emotions, not on laws. These are political motives. Soon there will be a referendum and en election. That’s why the authorities want to feel safe. Public associations will nominate observers. It is a threat for them. The authorities try to prevent such a possibility.”

At the trial Judge Leanora Buyankova warned the founder of the association and plaintiff Leanid Sudalenka:

(Sudalenka): “I expressed protest. Prosecutor Kostrykava pointed to the representatives of the justice board which legislative norms could be used to deny the registration”.

The justice board also proposed to attach to the case the letter of several teachers from Dobrush district who refused from being founders of the organization. It’s quite interesting that this letter wasn’t used in the refusal to register the association. The plaintiffs asked to summon the persons mentioned in the letter to the court as they had their names in the lists of founders of “Civil Alternative”.

Judge Buyankova didn’t satisfy the petition. She decided to reject the suit of the founders of “Civil Alternative” at all.