The Human Rights Center "Spring" has been working without its leader, Ales Bialiatski, for six months already. The human rights activist was detained on 4 August 2011, and sentenced to 4.5 years in maximum security colony with confiscation of property on 24 November.
In the morning of 6 February cars with furniture and slogans: “Human rights got evicted” appeared near the entrance of the Belarusian Embassy in the Czech Republic, marking the start of an action in support of human rights defender Ales Bialiatski and the Human Rights Center “Viasna”.
A picket in support of human rights defender Ales Bialiatski and other political prisoners in Belarus was held near the Belarusian Embassy in Stockholm on 31 January. It was organized by the Swedish human rights initiative Östgruppen in cooperation with Civil Rights Defenders, the Swedish branch of Amnesty International and the Swedish Union of Writers.
Signatures for the nomination of the Belarusian human rights defender and political prisoner Ales Bialiatski were collected in the Polish Parliament by representatives of the two biggest Polish parties – the ruling “Civil Platform” and the oppositional “Law and Justice”.
According to Roman Bezsmertny, former Ambassador of the Ukraine to Belarus, five Ukrainian parliamentarians addressed the Nobel Peace Prize Committee with a letter for the nomination of the Belarusian human rights defender Ales Bialiatski as a candidate for the Peace Prize.
One of the seats was left empty to symbolize the virtual presence of human rights defender Ales Bialiatski at the presentation of the annual report of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders in Kyiv, Ukraine, on 8 December. That’s how the All-Ukrainian Association of Civil Human Rights Actions expressed support to Bialiatski.
A letter was received from human rights defender Ales Bialiatski, sentenced to 4.5 years in a high-security colony. He wrote it on 30 November, after the announcement of the verdict, but before his transfer to the Zhodzina prison. After the trial he returned to his usual affairs – learning English, reading and answering a great number of letters. He feels quite well and calm and wishes it to all his colleagues. Ales is sure that the dirt which was flung at him by state-owned media didn't touch him, but the strong support from many acquaintances and strangers made a great positive impact.
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