Brest Regional Court turns down complaint of 'Brestskaya Viasna'

On 12 October the Brest Regional Court left standing the verdict of the Brest City Court supporting the non-registration of the Brest regional human rights organization Brestskaya Viasna by the justice bureau of the Brest Regional Executive Committee.

One of the co-founders of Brestskaya Viasna Uladzimir Vialichkinn explained to ERB: 'Firstly, we see that the state is reluctant to register human rights organizations. Secondly: it's not our first meeting with the specialists of the main justice bureau of the Brest REC Skrypkin who denies us registration for various wire-drawn reasons, violating the rights of 18 co-founders. Impunity spoils.'

The court agreed with the arguments of Mr. Skrypkin referring to the documents about registration of Brest residents, a mistake in which was introduced by the officer of the registration service Hanna Shymko. The essence of this mistake was that the co-founder of the organization Vital Karatysh was registered in house #13, though his real place of residence was house #12. Though the mistake was made not by the co-founders of Brestskaya Viasna, but by the authorities, presentation of house #12 as the address of Mr. Karatysh was considered as a mistake that served as the formal reason for non-registration of the NGO.