The Human Rights Center “Viasna”

Officers of the Mahiliou City Executive Committee pay visits to the dwellers of hostel in Budaunikou Street 7 who signed the appeal of civil activist Aliaksei Paulouski, threatening them with negative consequences.

Members of the Mahiliou region branch of the Belarusian Leftist Party “Fair World” intended to hold a picket at 12 a.m. on 28 January in order to protest against the people's pauperization. The picket was to have taken place at the “Khimik” stadium, the only place determined for opposition's actions by a special ruling of the city authorities. However, the authorities refused to authorize the action. The alleged reason is that a mass sportive event will be held at the stadium at the specified time.

Aliaksandr Shachanok, resident of the village of Dabuzha, Bykhau district, Mahiliou region, has addressed the district’s prosecutor’s office with a demand to re-initiate criminal prosecution against local policeman lieutenant Vashchyla, after his previous demand was dismissed by the police department.

When workers of the brigade where Aliaksei Paulouski works learned that the administration of the “Pramzhylbud” firm had refused to extend his labor contract, they wrote applications for resigning from work to express their solidarity with him.

The administration of the building organization “Pramzhylbud” informed the trade-union activist that his labor contract, expiring on 10 February, wouldn't be extended. No reasons were given, but Aliaksei Paulouski knows them: “I have always struggled with the administration of the organization to provide better conditions of work for workers. We work in anti-sanitary conditions, our working places are unattested. Masons are allowed to retire only when they turn 60 years old, but must be allowed to do it at 55, as the conditions of their work are considered to be harmful for the health.”

Mahiliou Regional Court has dismissed a complaint by Babruisk activist of the Belarusian Popular Front youth wing “BPF Youth” Andrei Padaliak.

On 13 December Dzmitry Akulenka, Judge of the Leninski District Court of Mahiliou, didn’t let Aliaksei Yauhenau take part in a trial as a representative of the Independent Trade Union of Radio Electronic Industry, and even expelled him from the court room. Relatives of the three people who had perished because of the break of a high-voltage wire in the Horki district were removed from the court room as well.

On 14 December the Mahiliou Region Court turned down the appeal of Liudmila Kavylkina and Larysa Shukaila, observers of the election campaign “For Free Elections!” against the verdict of the Leninski District Court of Mahiliou.