News on the topic: mass media
12.08.2008 Vitsebsk: how will district electoral commissions know which local commissions belong to them?
In Vitsebsk the state newspaper Vitsbichy, issue #85 of 26 July 2008, published a list of the local electoral commissions which was sorted by administrative districts instead of electoral districts. Only a picture with the borders of the electoral districts was published. The newspaper also failed to present to the electorate any information about the administration of the district electoral commissions. It gives the reasons to think that not all members of district electoral commissions will know what local electoral commissions belong to their electoral districts.
11.08.2008 Homel: state media continue agitating for pro-governmental candidates
The state regional newspaper Homelskiya Vedamastsi publishes interviews with the officials who run for parliament. In its issue for 9 August a whole page was dedicated to Alexander Shatsko. Now Shatsko is an MP from Navabelitskaya electoral district #36 of Homel. He also intends to run for parliament again.
11.08.2008 Party of Communists Belarusian to sue Lukashenka for discrediting
At its assembly this Sunday the PCB ruled to sue Alexander Lukashenka, who in connection with the blast on 4 July stated that ‘Kaliakin’s communists profess fascist ideology’.
08.08.2008 Dismissed for distribution of ‘Tovarishch’ newspaper?
An activist of the Party of Communists Belarusian Vasil Mamkin has been fired from the open stock company Elektraaparatura where worked for more than 25 years. He has sued to Chyhunachny district court of Homel for rehabilitation at work. He also demands from the defendant 10 million rubles in moral damages.
08.08.2008 Journalists detained near House of Parliament
A photojournalist of Belhazeta Vadzim Zamirouski and another photojournalist have been detained near the House of Government in Independence Square today.
07.08.2008 Vitsebsk: journalists are interrogated in criminal case on threat letters from Russian neo-Nazi
On 7 August an independent journalist Aliona Stsiapanava was summonsed to the KGB and interrogated as a witness on a criminal case that had been brought on threat letters sent by activists of an unregistered Russian neo-Nazi organization RNE (Russian National Unity). The investigator asked Stsiapanava where and when she had seen such letters and what human rights organizations she knew.
07.08.2008 ‘Narodnaya Volia’ confiscated from members of Yaraslau Ramanchuk’s initiative group
On 5 August in Hrodna the police detained the civil activists Yury Istomin and Zmitser Slutski, who were collecting signatures for nomination of Yaraslau Ramanchuk a candidate to the Chamber of Rerepsentatives (lower chamber of the Belarusian parliament), and confiscated from the detainees six sheaves of Narodnaya Volia newspaper.
06.08.2008 Committee to Protect Journalists urges President Lukashenka to reconsider repressive media law
The Committee to Protect Journalists is troubled to learn that President Alexander Lukashenko has signed a restrictive new media law, which, according to CPJ research, will allow authorities to further restrict press freedom in Belarus.
06.08.2008 Babruisk: state media praise pro-governmental candidates
In Babruisk there started hidden agitation for pro-governmental nominees to the Parliament. For instance, the newspaper Babruiskaye Zhyttsio (founded by Babruisk town executive committee) published an interview with the chief engineer of the open stock company Belshyna Uladzimir Karpiak, running at Babruisk Pershamaiskaya electoral district. The interview is quite large and tells about his work, family and hobbies, which looks like electoral advertisement of Karpiak. At the same time, unhidden agitation against democratic and oppositional candidates can be found in the newspaper.
06.08.2008 Baranavichy: anonymous thanks to pro-governmental candidate
In Baranavichy the state newspaper Nash Krai (#91 for 5 August 2008) published another article about general Vankovich, who is a deputy now and intends to run for a seat at the Parliament again. This time it was made on behalf of some Dzmitry Mikhalavich (surname unknown).
06.08.2008 Baranavichy: state media agitate for pro-governmental candidates
No agitation is permitted by the law at the present stage of the electoral campaign. However, the state media often publish materials about pro-governmental candidates.
06.08.2008 Law ‘On mass media’ adopted
According to the information of the information agencies BelTA and Interfax with reference to the presidential press-service, Alexander Lukashenka has signed the law On mass media. Six months after its official publication the law will come into force. Neither of the agencies called the date when the document was signed.
01.08.2008 Journalist from Lida gets fingerprinted
On 30 July Stanislau Sudnik, editor of Nasha Slova newspaper, was summonsed to Lida KGB department. There he was asked usual questions about the 4 July blast in Minsk and fingerprinted.
01.08.2008 Horki: state newspaper media agitates for pro-governmental candidate
An article Active Faze of the Campaign, dedicated to the elections to the Chamber of Representatives, was published in Leninski Shliakh newspaper for 26 July 2008. The article informs the readers about the campaign’s schedule. A separate paragraph, in bold font, was dedicated to the pro-governmental pretender to candidate, Tatsiana Asmalouskaya, and her meeting with the working collective of Ausianka enterprise on last Tuesday. As a result of this meeting the working collective supported Asmalouskaya and nominated her candidacy to the Chamber of Representatives at Horki electoral district #86.
11.07.2008 Hrodna: police are after Mikola Markevich’s sons
On 11 July Hrodna journalist, former political prisoner Mikola Markevich informed RFE/RL that his sons Aliaksei and Mikola are summonsed to the police.
