News on the topic: freedom of association
04.09.2009 Supreme Court turned down cassation complaint against non-registration of ‘Brestskaya Viasna’
On 3 September the Supreme Court of Belarus considered cassation complaint against the non-registration of the civil association Brestskaya Viasna by the Ministry of Justice. As said by a founder of the organization Uladzimir Vialichkin, ‘the trial ended up predictably. Nobody had any illusions about it. That’s why when the pronounced the verdict: ‘The verdict of Brest oblast court is to be left without changes and the complaint is to be turned down’, for is it witnessed only that we have exhausted the means of struggle for our civil rights on the national level and have only the possibility of applying to the UN Human Rights Committee left to us.’
02.09.2009 Brest Viasna may be registered
The Department of Justice of Brest Regional Executive Committee has postponed delivering judgment on the state registration of the Brest Viasna regional public association. The official letter received by the founders of Brest Viasna requests that the NGO provided the original of the letter of guarantee concerning the issue of its legal address and approve the amendments to the NGO’s Charter proposed by Brest Viasna at a general assembly within a month’s time, thus providing certain chance for the organization to obtain state registration.
26.08.2009 Party of Freedom and Progress denied registration
The Supreme Court of Belarus has turned down a complaint by the founders of the newly-created Party of Freedom and Progress, supporting the decision by the Ministry of Justice and denying registration to the party. Judge Mikalai Babkou claimed the founders had failed to provide correct data in the application. Uladzimir Navasiad, Party of Freedom and Progress leader, says he and his party-mates are going ‘to keep being engaged in politics.’
24.08.2009 FIDH expert comments on Viasna’s case (continued)
Kirill Koroteev, Mission Delegate of the International Federation for Human Rights, has commented on the case of the Human Rights Center Viasna, facing repeated refusals by the state registration bodies, as well as the situation in the field of Belarusian NGOs, in general. Mr.Koroteev attended the consideration of Viasna’s complaint at the Supreme Court on 12-17 August 2009, calling the final verdict a disgrace of Belarusian justice.
21.08.2009 FIDH expert comments on Viasna’s case
Kirill Koroteev, Mission Delegate of the International Federation for Human Rights, has commented on the case of the Human Rights Center Viasna, facing repeated refusals by the state registration bodies, as well as the situation in the field of Belarusian NGOs, in general. Mr.Koroteev attended the consideration of Viasna’s complaint at the Supreme Court on 12-17 August 2009, calling the final verdict a disgrace of Belarusian justice.
20.08.2009 Belarusians urged to mark European Day of Remembrance for Victims of Stalinism and Nazism
A number of Belarusian NGOs, including the For Freedom movement, Society for the Protection of Historical and Cultural Monuments, the Union of Poles in Belarus etc., have called upon Belarusian citizens to mark European Day of Remembrance for Victims of Stalinism and Nazism on 23 August. They are planning to organize a trip of remembrance to the Katyn Massacre Memorial in Smolensk region, Russia, where some 15,000 persons of various nationalities were murdered by the Soviet special police in 1940.
18.08.2009 For Freedom activist fined
According to the BelaPAN news agency quoting human rights activist Raman Kisliak, on 18 August Brest Leninski Court convicted For Freedom member Dzianis Turchaniak of disobedience of police order and fined him BYR 1,400,000. According to Mr.Kisliak, the activist was detained on 17 August in downtown Brest during an opposition flash-mob. Dzianis Turchaniak claims he was not taking part in the rally. However, he, together with a Young Front activist Mikhail Ilyin, was arrested and taken to the local police department to be charged with disobedience of orders and disorderly conduct, respectively. Mikhail Ilyin is still to stand trial on 25 August after he made a request for counsel.
14.08.2009 Anzhalika Borys summonsed to police
Head of the unrecognized Union of Poles Anzhalika Borys was summoned to Leninski district police department of Hrodna.
13.08.2009 Ales Bialiatski: The process of registration is of no less importance to us as human rights activists as the fact of registration.
Ales Bialiatski, elected head of the human rights organization Nasha Viasna that was denied the official registration by the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Belarus, vice-president of the International Federation for Human Rights, sums up the process of registration and shares the plans for the future.
13.08.2009 Picket in support of political prisoners
In the evening on 11 August, an action of solidarity with oppositionists in the Belarusian prisons was held in Minsk.
12.08.2009 Yury Chavusau: ‘Developments in Belarus haven’t reached even the level of 2003, when ‘Viasna’ was liquidated’
Political scientist Yury Chavusau made a comment on the decision of the Supreme Court, by which the appeal against the non-registration of the civil human rights association Nasna Viasna was turned down. He is sure that ‘this verdict witnesses only that the real developments in Belarus haven’t reached the level at which Nasha Viasna could be registered’.
12.08.2009 Supreme Court turned down appeal against non-registration of ‘Nasha Viasna’
The founders of the civil human rights association Nasha Viasna did not manage to get abolished the decision of the Ministry of Justice on the non-registration.
10.08.2009 ‘European Belarus’ activists detained for attempt to hang out white-red-white flag
Activists of European Belarus Aleh Ladutska and Mikalai Tkachenka were detained by police for an attempt to hang out a white-red-white flag at the railway station in Orsha. They were kept at the police station for four hours (though only three-hour detention without charges is allowed by the law). Police officers drew up interrogation protocols.
10.08.2009 Court turns down complaint of ‘European Belarus’ Maksim Viniarski
On 7 August, a complaint of activist of the civil campaign European Belarus Maksim Viniarski was considered in court.
06.08.2009 Ales Bialiatski: ‘The attitude to human rights activists hasn’t changed since the liquidation of ‘Viasna’ till registration denial to ‘Nasha Viasna’
Belarusian human rights activist ales Bialiatski, vice-president of the International Federation for Human Rights, gives an outline of the situation of human rights defenders in Belarus during the recent years.
