The Human Rights Center “Viasna”

News for 1 Oct 2013

01.10.2013 Ihar Pastnou counts on further assistance of human rights defenders

Vitsebsk physician Ihar Pastnou, who has received forced medical treatment in the regional clinical center of Psychiatry and Addiction, is going to continue to appeal against the decision of the Vitsebsk District Court which authorized the treatment. If he fails to get the justice at the national level, he will appeal his sentence at the UN Human Rights Committee.

01.10.2013 Criminal charges against Aliaksei Shchadrou get dropped

As it became known, the criminal case which had been initiated this year by the Shchuchyn District Police Department against philanthropist Aliaksei Shchadrou, was dropped in September. The appropriate ruling was issued on 11 September and received by Mr. Shchadrou on 24 September.

01.10.2013 Belarusian political prisoners are in the focus of attention at the book fair in Gothenburg

During the book fair in Gothenburg the human rights organization Östgruppen organized a seminar "Political prisoners in the center of Europe". During the seminar, the floor was taken by the Östgruppen chairman Martin Uggla and photographer and journalist Maria Sodeberg, who talked about Ales Bialiatski and Mikalai Statkevich.

01.10.2013 Vitsebsk Regional Court upholds a fine for distribution of leaflets

An activist of the Belarusian Leftist Party “Fair World” Andrei Andreyeu tried to appeal the verdict of the Kastrychnitski District Court of Vitsebsk. He was fined 2 million rubles for distributing the informational materials of the civil campaign “Tell the Truth!”.

01.10.2013 Brest authorities ban the pickets against the introduction of the exit fee

The local activists of the United Civil Party filed applications for four pickets, by means of which they intended to draw the attention of the society to the new initiative of the authorities which violates the rights of citizens, namely – the intention to take an exit fee of $100 from the Belarusian citizens who intended to buy goods abroad.

01.10.2013 Anti-corruption picket in Baranavichy

A picket against the corruption among the local officials was held in Baranavichy on 30 September by social activist Mikalai Charnavus who held a poster “You catch Ural crooks, whereas our own ones rest at the Canaries".

01.10.2013 Belarusian political prisoners on the short list of Sakharov prize

30 September saw the announcement of the short list of candidates for Andrey Sakharov Prize "For the freedom of thought". Among the contenders for the award the Foreign Affairs Committee of European Parliament called Belarusian political prisoners Ales Bialiatski, Eduard Lobau and Mikalai Statkevich, as well as the US national Edward Snovden and the Pakistani human rights activist, schoolgirl Malala Yusufzai.

01.10.2013 Vaclav Havel Human Rights Award goes to Belarusian prisoner of conscience

Ales Bialiatski, a Belarusian human rights activist and a prisoner of conscience, was awarded the Václav Havel Human Rights Prize in recognition for his work to improve the human rights situation in his country and for the great personal risk he took in the process, Amnesty International said today.