Letter of “BDG” Journalist Iryna Makavetskaya to Minister of Justice

Mister Minister!

The will of the Ministry of Justice and regional Justice Boards to call public organizations to accuracy in its accountancy and abidance by their statutes is very praiseworthy, but can we cure the snuffles by cutting one’s head? This method would be radical for such unpleasant, but actually trifling illness. All workers of Your ministry would make this conclusion if their snuffles and heads were concerned.

However, liquidating public associations for drawbacks in accountancy, irregular meetings and the failure of their juridical addresses to comply with the demands of the Housing code, Your workers use other principles. Why? This is the question that affects many people, giving birth to different versions, including the version about the political motivation for such lynching.

If we believe the statistics of the Justice Board of Homel Regional Executive Committee, 150 organizations, checked up in 2003, received 220 written warnings. The mistakes of these organizations don’t differ much from the pretensions to Human Rights Center “Viasna”. Won’t You close all those organizations? Doesn’t it seem to you that such number of violations is to be cured not by liquidations, but by increasing of the legal awareness level among workers of public organizations?

I’d like to ask You to save life to “Human Rights Center “Viasna”, because, despite its bad accountancy and other drawbacks this organization has been giving priceless support to the people in need, and it must be much more valuable for the State than correctly filed papers.

I.V. Makavetskaya 16 October 2003