The Human Rights Center “Viasna”

The 16th anniversary of the Human Rights Center “Viasna” was marked by the presentation of two books: a photo album "For Right to Elect: Portraits of Convicts. Square-2010" and the book of interviews “Our Viasna. History in Faces".

It was 16 years ago, when after a wave of brutal arrests during the traditional Chernobyl Way march a group of activists started collecting and disseminating information on the detainees, trying to give them financial support. This is how “Viasna-96” was founded, whose priority was providing assistance to the victims of political repressions and sharing information on these repressions.

On 11 March the vice-head of the Human Rights Center "Viasna" Valiantsin Stefanovich was prevented from leaving for Lithuania. He was stopped by the Belarusian border guards at the crossing point "Kamenny Loh" and stated that he was prohibited to leave Belarus.

The General Procuracy forwarded the appeal of the deputy head of the Human Rights Center "Viasna" Valiantsin Stefanovich concerning unlawful foreign travel restrictions to the Ministry of Defense. The human rights defender was informed about it by a letter on 28 March.

On 24 February 2012, the Pervomaisk District Court in Vitebsk sentenced opposition activist Siarhei Kavalenka to two years and one month imprisonment, having found him guilty of evading serving a punishment of supervised release.

Valiantsin Stefanovich, deputy chair of the Human Rights Center “Viasna” has received copies of court rulings ordering to execute the decision by Minsk Partyzanski District Court of 16 December 2011.

Paris-Geneva, February 21, 2012. The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), condemns the rejection of the appeal lodged by the Vice-Chairman of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) “Viasna”, Mr. Valiantsin Stefanovich, before the Minsk City Court.

The Human Rights Center “Viasna” issued an urgent appeal to Siarhei Kavalenka, who has been keeping a hunger-strike for 57 days already. Here’s the full text of the address:

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”.