“Citizens of Belarus are deprived of the right to have rights”

This is the conclusion drawn by Mazyr human rights defender Uladzimir Malei from a series of trials concerning the prohibition of pickets in support of the head of the Human Rights Center “Viasna” Ales Bialiatski and other political prisoners.

In August-October 2011 he filed for applications for the authorization of pickets which he intended to hold in the place which had been officially determined for such actions by Ruling #506 of the Mazyr District Executive Committee of 22 April 2008 (and then also by the newer Ruling #1202 of 15 September 2011, supplied with the list of state agencies to conclude service agreements with).

At present Tseliapun's latest appeal is being considered by the Supreme Court of the Republic of Belarus.

All regional branches of the Human Rights Center “Viasna” applied for the authorization of actions in support of Ales Bialiatski dated to the anniversary of his detention, 4 August 2011. On 11 July such an application was filed in Mazyr as well, but the action was banned by the authorities. The applicant intended to hold a procession along Savetskaya Street from “Pryroda” shop up to Lenin Square, then to the sculpture complex “Kupalinka”, a performing stage and the ground near it not far from the river of Prypiats – the riverbank up to the brindge.

On 4 July Mr. Malei also tried to conclude service agreements with the police, polyclinics and communal utilities, as required by the new ruling. However, the heads of these agencies passed his applications to their deputies so that the latter ones would give him answers within the term provided by the Law “On applications of citizens” (one month).

However, is it easy for a human rights defender to get into the officials' offices?

“This process deserves a separate description”, says Uladzimir. “The time for audiences is 2 -8 p.m. at all of these agencies. For instance, I had to come to the deputy head of the Mazyr district housing communal economy Turavets many times: he was absent from his office at 3 p.m., at 6.30 and 7.45.

Several days after it Uladzimir Tseliapun was invited to the juridical department of the housing economy by a telephone call, and an agreement for cleaning the territory after the mass event was signed.

What concerns the meeting with the chief doctor and the lawyer of the city polyclinic, the human rights defender got an impression that he was totally unaware of provisions of the Law “On applications of citizens” and Ruling of the Mazyr District Executive Committee #1202 of 15 September 2011.

“They don't apply to the district executive committee for the authorization of their events and don't attach service agreements to their applications,” said Mr. Tseliapun. “They, activists of the “Belaya Rus”, also don't consider it as necessary to implement requirements of the Law “On applications of citizens”. The answer was to have been given on the merits of the stated requirements and in the language of the application whereas the Mazyr branch of the “Belaya Rus” ignores the Belarusian language, the first state language of Belarus.

Lieutenant-colonel Siarhei Kadoba from the Mazyr District Police Department also answered Tseliapun's application with violations of the Law “On applications of citizens”.

“I have already passed all national court instances and am preparing an appeal to the UN Human Rights Committee”, says Uladzimir Tseliapun. “The second attempt to protect my right to a public expression of opinion, public solidarity with the people repressed on political grounds is just beginning. Maybe, I won't receive a denial...”

Summing up the results of all this story, the human rights defender focuses the attention on the fact that the present political regime in Belarus deprives all citizens of Belarus of the right to have rights, any right as such.”