Navapolatsk: Activists Apply to Prosecutor’s Office

On 30 August the Navapolatsk activists Valery Shauchenka and Ihar Sukharukau applied to Navapolatsk Regional Prosecutor’s Office asking it to make Navapolatsk City Court consider their complaint against the unlawful actions of Navapolatsk City Executive Committee.

This story begun in April 2006 when Navapolatsk CEC didn’t permit the daily picketing in defense of political prisoners near the city culture palace. The activists applied to Navapolatsk Regional Executive Committee, which answered that the CEC acted legally. Then Shauchenka and Sukharukau applied to the court, asking to punish the local authorities for self-will (article 167 of the Administrative Code) and violation of the law On citizens’ applications (article 167-7). The court refused to consider the complaint and answered that the plaintiffs allegedly need to present a police report registering the act of self-will. Dissatisfied with such an answer, the activists applied to the regional prosecutor’s office. According to them, they decided to go through all court instances in order to defend their constitutional rules and wanted to see the outcome.