The Human Rights Center “Viasna”

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Picks of the week

Elections-2019

Picks of the week

After a summer lull, when only a few politically motivated cases of persecution were reported by the media, the fall saw a new wave of repression targeting opponents of the current regime.

Election echo: more activists convicted of illegal protesting

At least eight opposition activists have been found guilty of joining the illegal demonstrations held in central Minsk in November.

Amnesty International urges Belarus to halt execution of Viktar Paulau

Amnesty International has launched an urgent action calling on its members around the world to write to Belarusian President Aliaksandr Lukashenka. The activists are invited to ask the authorities of Belarus to halt the execution of Viktar Paulau.

Viasna alerts UN Special Rapporteurs to increased repression of peaceful protesters

Activists of the Human Rights Center “Viasna” have written to the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, and the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus. The urgent communication comes as a response to the recent boost in repression suffered by the participants in peaceful protests held as part of the parliamentary elections.

Human Rights Situation in Belarus: November 2019

On November 17, elections of members of the House of Representatives of the 7th convocation were held in Belarus. The only domestic citizen monitoring group, “Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections”, came to the conclusion that the elections of deputies of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of the seventh convocation, in general, did not meet a number of key international standards for democratic and free elections, and the electoral legislation of the Republic of Belarus.

Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections protest post-election repression

Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections calls on the authorities of Belarus to immediately put an end to repression against members of opposition parties and initiatives.

Picks of the week

Protesters face charges in the aftermath of November 17 elections; BAJ criticizes state media over poor coverage of the campaign; critical blogger loses claim demanding compensation for "false charges"

Sentence in REP trade union trial commuted after an amnesty

The terms of “restricted liberty” earlier imposed on Henadz Fiadynich and Ihar Komlik, leaders of the independent trade union REP, have been reduced by 12 months, following an amnesty bill passed by the parliament, praca-by.info said.

Orange the World to End Violence against Women

November 25 was marked as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. Viasna talked to Belarusian activists working with gender issues to ask them about ways of addressing problems of violence against women in Belarus.

Picks of the week: Parliamentary elections in figures

The November 17 elections brought both predictable and quite unexpected results. Some of them are shocking, while others are absurd.

EU, U.S. regret “no meaningful changes” in Belarus elections

The November 17 parliamentary elections were a “lost opportunity,” as the vote failed to fully meet international standards, the EU said in a statement released through the office of Maja Kocijancic, Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/European Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations.

OSCE/ODIHR: Curbs on freedoms and concerns over procedural integrity tarnish elections

MINSK, 18 November 2019 – Fundamental freedoms were disregarded and the integrity of the election process was not adequately safeguarded in the early parliamentary elections in Belarus even as the number of registered candidates increased, international observers concluded in a preliminary statement published today.

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