05.01.2018 Human Rights Situation in Belarus: December 2017
December was not marked by any significant systemic changes in the field of human rights.
29.12.2017 EU statement on two upheld death sentences in Belarus
Statement by the Spokesperson on two upheld death sentences in Belarus
24.12.2017 Report on the results of monitoring the registration of nomination groups
According to the CEC, 17,542 nomination groups were registered, which is 99.9% of the total number of nominations. In the previous elections to the local councils of 2014, the registration percentage was 99.7%.
20.12.2017 Supreme Court confirms death verdicts for 2 men
The Criminal Division of the Supreme Court of Belarus has upheld the death sentences earlier handed down to Ihar Hershankou and Siamion Berazhnoi, two of the four people involved in the so-called ‘black realtors’ case’.
19.12.2017 Practice of holding peaceful assemblies in Belarus cannot be a good example, Viasna and BHC say
The experts of the Human Rights Center "Viasna" and the Belarusian Helsinki Committee have prepared an overview of the situation with freedom of assembly in Belarus in 2016-2017. The analytical document is part of a regional project run by the European Center for Not-for-Profit Law (ECNL). Earlier, the initiative presented the results of monitoring of freedom of peaceful assembly in the five Balkan countries. Now a similar review of Belarus is available online.
13.12.2017 Restricting civil society participation in OSCE a tremendous setback for Helsinki process, says CSP
“Restricting civil society participation in the work of the OSCE would be a tremendous setback for the Helsinki process and a betrayal of the spirit and founding values of this unique peace advancement initiative,” says an appeal by the Civic Solidarity Platform, a network of more than 90 human rights NGOs from throughout the OSCE region.
12.12.2017 Ex-defendant in ‘White Legion case’ charged with weapon possession
Andrei Bialiauski, who earlier faced charges in so-called ‘White Legion case’, has been formally accused of storing a cartridge (Part 2 of Art. 295 of the Criminal Code — Illegal manufacturing, purchase, transfer, possession, sale, storage, transportation, or carrying of firearms, ammunition, explosives, etc.). Bialiauski told this on December 12, shortly after another interrogation at the Investigative Committee.
12.12.2017 Opposition leader Mikalai Statkevich briefly detained at border checkpoint
Belarusian border officers have detained Mikalai Statkevich, leader of the opposition National Congress, as he was leaving the country together with his wife Maryna Adamovich this morning.
11.12.2017 UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination publishes findings on Belarus
The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has published its findings on the countries it examined during its latest session from 20 November to 8 December. These include Belarus, which last reported to the Committee in 2013.
08.12.2017 Monitoring report on the formation of district election commissions
Observation is carried out by the Belarusian Helsinki Committee and the Human Rights Center "Viasna" in the framework of the campaign "Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections".
07.12.2017 UN HRC urges Belarus not to expel Iranian facing death in home country
The UN Human Rights Committee has called on the Belarusian government not to expel Mehrdad Jamshidian, an Iranian national residing in Belarus, who is facing torture and the death penalty in his home country, human rights activist Raman Kisliak told BelaPAN.
04.12.2017 Human Rights Situation in Belarus: November 2017
In November, the government continued to use repressive practices against political opponents and civil society activists; there were no significant systemic changes in the field of human rights.
04.12.2017 UN experts set uncomfortable questions in Belarus anti-discrimination report
The lack of anti-discrimination legislation, the absence of an ombudsman, the problem with the independence of the judiciary and the legal profession, the presence of the President's decree on social dependency, lack of cooperation between the government and the civil society — these and other concerns, which characterize the overall situation of human rights in the country, were raised before the official delegation of Belarus during the consideration of the country’s report in the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.
30.11.2017 Authorities end investigation in ‘White Legion case’
“The preliminary investigation of the case is completed. On November 27, a decision was taken to discontinue the criminal prosecution of all defendants in the so-called ‘White Legion case’. We believe that this has drawn a line under the case. The case file has been sent to the prosecutor for consideration and assessment of the legality of the decision. The defendants have begun to familiarize with the decision to dismiss the criminal case and the case file,” the Investigative Committee’s website said today.
30.11.2017 Death Penalty in Europe and Central Asia: Close to the Finishing Line
On 11 December 1977 Amnesty International and participants of the International Conference on the Abolition of the Death Penalty issued the Stockholm Declaration which called on all governments to bring about the immediate and total abolition of the death penalty. At the time, only 16 countries had abolished the death penalty. Forty years on, that figures stands at 105. To mark this anniversary, Amnesty International looks through this newsletter at trends in Europe and Central Asia and takes a closer look at the use of the death penalty in Belarus, the last executioner in the region.
