New Life Church Applies to Prosecutor because of STV Slander

On October 25 members of the New Life Church will apply to the Prosecutor General with the request to charge STV and its employees with slander. The believers are exasperated with slanderous information about their Church shown by STV, its author Ludmila Dzhurayeva, and guests: head of Minsk municipal department for religions and nationalities Ala Rabitseva, and Dr. of History Ivan Yanushkevich.

Acting according to the Belarusian legislation, on October 19 the Church addressed the STV Company demanding to refute false information about New Life Church which was broadcasted in the news program on October 14 and 15.

-- We think the show was slanderous, because the facts presented are not true and are of provocative character, -- claims Church lawyer Siarhei Lukanin, -- As a result of boorish montage of my words, STV broadcasted the alleged statement of mine, that could be understood that all participants of the hunger-strike were going to starve to death.

The believers decided to apply to the General prosecutor after a phone conversation with the STV legal consultant Halina Dvartsova. She said the company management failed to consider the demand because she had “no time to deal with that” and had “nothing to do with the believers’ hunger-strike”. When Siarhei Lukanin reminded the STV lawyer that in case the company fails to refute the false information they would have to apply to the prosecutor’s office, Ms. Dvartsova said: “You can write whoever you want. We don’t care about it”