Authorities warn prisoner rights group that it may be shut down

The authorities have warned a prisoner rights group called Platforma that it may be closed down, Andrey Bandarenka, leader of the organization, told BelaPAN. 

Earlier this month, the tax inspectorate of the Savetski district in Minsk wrote to Platforma that it may face closure because no money arrived in its bank account. That means that the group has not engaged in any activities, the tax office said. 

"This is only a warning so far, no one has showed us any internal documents," Mr. Bandarenka said. "But there's much activity concerning our organization. We routinely have to visit the KGB [Committee for State Security], various district police departments, police stations and tax offices." 

Platforma has recently been slapped with a fine of 500,000 rubels for allegedly missing a deadline for submitting papers to the district tax office. Mr. Bandarenka has been handed a fine of 200,000 rubels over the same offense.