News on the topic: human rights defenders
11.02.2008 Human Rights Activists and Members of BPF Party Prohibited to Meet with Zhaleznichenka
On Sunday, 10 February, the human rights activists from Homel and Rechytsa and members of the Belarusian People’s Front Party from Zhlobin came to military units 83469 where Zmitser Zhaleznichenka is being illegally kept. The duty soldier refused to let them meet with the activist, referring to a recently introduced quarantine.
11.02.2008 Amnesty International and Belarusian Helsinki Committee Condemn Executions of Convicts in Belarus
On 5 February 5 the Supreme Court of Belarus announced that Siarhei Marozau, the leader of a Homel-based criminal gang, and his close associates, Valery Harbaty and Ihar Danchanka, had been executed by shooting. The three were sentenced to death by shooting in a months-long trial that came to an end on 1 December 2006. The so-called Marozau Gang, which was said to have terrorized the Homel region between 1990 and 2004, was accused of 16 murders.
09.01.2008 Political Repressions in Belarus in 2007
During the last year Belarusian human rights activists carefully collected information about different forms of repressions that were used by the authorities for political persecution of public and political activists. Today the Belarusian version of www.spring96.org presents an important result of their work – the list of the citizens who underwent administrative persecution in 2007. Soon the website will also be updated with information about criminal cases against political opponents and other kinds of persecution.
14.12.2007 Norwegian PEN-center and IPA: Freedom of Expression Is Violated in Belarus
During the last two years the government of Belarus did not improve the situation of the freedom of expression and continued pressurizing journalists and writers. This is the opinion presented in the report of representatives of the Norwegian PEN-center and the International Publishers’ Association on the results of their visits to Belarus in November 2007.
13.12.2007 Human Rights Activists Remind Navumau about Political Prisoners
On 13 December a group of human rights activists consisting of the deputy chair of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) Ales Bialiatski, the human rights activists Alena Laptsionak, Valiantsin Stefanovich and Siarzhuk Sys passed to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Belarus (MIA) thousands of origami cranes which had been prepared by the international human rights organization Amnesty International for liberation of the political prisoner Zmitser Dashkevich.
12.12.2007 Brest: Unknown Persons again Damage Automobile of Human Rights Activist Vialichkin
The citizen of Brest Uladzimir Vialichkin parks his Nissan near the multistoried building where he lives. All paid garages and car parks are far away. A police car has always stood near the house, that’s why the human rights activist thought that there was no need to be afraid for his car.
11.12.2007 Prisoner Nikolay Kostyshev Announces REPEATED Hunger-strike in Minsk Jail #1
According to the relatives of the citizen of Russian Federation, prisoner Nikolay Kostyshev, on 25 October 2007 he had to announce a REPEATED hunger-strike, because for two days already he cannot get justified, despite the numerous violations of the Belarusian laws during the investigation and his innocence. Though Kostyshev announced a hunger-strike before and sent a number of addresses to the prosecutor’s office and the Ministry of Internal Affairs, he received no answers.
11.12.2007 National Human Rights Award’2007
The organizing committee of the Charter’97 press-center has nominated candidates of the National Human Rights Award in 2007. This award was founded by the Charter’97 civil initiative in 1998.
10.12.2007 Belarusian Authorities Defy Human Rights. Statement of Human Rights Center ‘Viasna’
Human Rights Center 'Viasna' states with a grave concern that Belarus does not respect the fundamental civil and political rights. The violations of these rights are systematic. They are defined by the conscious politics of the state authorities and their top leaders...
10.12.2007 Valery Misnikau – Another Victim of Punitive Psychiatry
Since 16 November a former teacher of history and law from Vitsebsk Valery Misnikau has been kept at the oblast psychiatric hospital 'Slabodka' in Braslau. This human rights activist, who called himself ‘civil prosecutor’, has often undergone legal persecution for his public activities.
10.12.2007 Barys Khamaida Holds 10 December Action in Vitsebsk
Today the activist-veteran Barys Khamaida congratulated the citizens of Vitsebsk on the Universal Day of Human Rights Day.
07.12.2007 Judge Kazlou Supports Opinion of Vitsebsk Authorities
The chair of Vitsebsk oblast BHC office Pavel Levinau has sued against the picket bans issued by Vitsebsk city executive committee. The judge of Kastrychnitski district court of Vitsebsk Eduard Kazlou took the side of Vitsebsk authorities who think that pickets must be held in the places that were determined by them – desolate places at the city outskirts.
07.12.2007 Baranavichy: Another Picket Banned
‘… Baranavichy city executive committee has to refuse in authorizing the picket, because the application does not correspond to the norms of articles of 4 and 5 of the law On mass actions in the Republic of Belarus. The measures for ensuring the public order and the measures connected with the medical serving and cleaning the territory after the mass action are not mentioned in the application…’. This standard come-off was signed by the deputy chair of Baranavichy city executive committee D.Kastsiukevich.
07.12.2007 Brest Authorities Ban Picket Dedicated to Human Rights Day
On the eve of the anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Brest city executive committee receive 2 applications for pickets. The applicants intended to hold them both on 9 December – one in Lenin Street and the other – at the 'Locomotive' stadium.
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.
