05.05.2009 Action of solidarity with Mikalai Autukhovich: day four

The action of solidarity with political prisoner Mikalai Autukhovich, who has gone on hunger strike, continued in Minsk on 4 May.

04.05.2009 Belarusian Language Society demands that a Belarusian TV channel be established by autumn

In the beginning of April the head of the Belarusian Language Society Aleh Trusau addressed the head of the presidential administration Uladzimir Makei with the request to establish a Belarusian-language TV channel. According to Mr. Trusau, absence of such a channel deprives the citizens of holistic informational space in their native language. Калі да восені не вырашыцца пытанне пра стварэнне беларускамоўнага дзяржаўнага тэлеканала, Таварыства беларускай мовы імя Францішка Скарыны ў верасні пачне збор подпісаў грамадзян пад адпаведным зваротам да ўлады.

04.05.2009 Action of solidarity: day three

On 3 May activists of the civil campaign European Belarus, Young Front and Young Belarus traditionally gathered in Kastrychnitskaya Square at 6 p.m.

04.05.2009 Action of solidarity: day two

At 6 p.m. on 2 May about 40 activists of Young Front, Young Belarus, European Belarus and BPF Youth lined up in Kastrychnitskaya Square in Minsk with portraits of Mikalai Autukhovich in their hands and demanded that Autukhovich and other political prisoners were released from prison.

04.05.2009 Brest: opposition activists are driven away from Lenin Square

On 1 May in Brest the police did not let activists of the Belarusian Social Democratic Party (Hramada) and the Party Communists Belarusian to stand in the crowd of idlers in Lenin Square, where passers-by stopped to watch the opening of the honors board of the best enterprises of the region by the city authorities.

29.04.2009 Youth activists address Prosecutor General with petition

A number of Belarusian youth activists have addressed Prosecutor General Ryhor Vasilevich with an open appeal demanding to take under control the investigation of the cases of illegal persecution of opposition youth activists, including the abductions of Young Front members Nasta Palazhanka and Dzianis Karnou in March 2009, and the assaults of Artur Finkevich and Mikita Krasnou. ‘We think that such savagery is absolutely intolerable in Belarus. We ask Prosecutor General to take over the control of the investigation of the crimes and demand to find and punish the persons behind these cowardly and illegal offences,’ says the appeal. The petition was signed by a dozen famous Belarusian opposition leaders, independent journalists and representatives of intelligentsia – Aliaksandr Milinkevich, Aliaksandr Kazulin, Paval Seviarynets, Uladzimer Khalip, Henadz Buraukin, Uladzimer Niakliayeu etc.

29.04.2009 Prosecutor’s office refuses to initiate criminal case for oppositionists’ abductions

Minsk prosecutor’s office has denied a request of the deputy chairperson of the “Young Front” Nasta Palazhanka and an activist of the organisation Dzyanis Karnou who demanded to find persons who had abducted them and beaten them up.

On March 25 the young people were detained by the unknown who had certificates of Internal Affairs ministry and hid their faces under masks, Radio Svaboda reminds.

Nasta Palazhanka and Dzyanis Karnou were first beaten in a car, and after that the girl was released near the village of Tarasava not far from Minsk, and Karnou was taken to a forest near Dzyarzhynsk. There he was beaten up, his jeans were torn, and he was forced to stand on the snow on his knees. Mobile phones of the Young Front activists were seized.

21.04.2009 Youth activist Barazenka addresses prosecutor’s office with a claim

Activist of the European Belarus civil campaign Aliaksandr Barazenka, who was among the persons involved in the notorious ‘case of the 14’, has lodged a complaint with Pinsk Prosecutor’s Office against Siarhei Kisel, penal inspector, who had beaten him on 23 March and issued a warning for violating sentence execution regulations. On 17 April Barazenka was summonsed to Pinsk Town Prosecutor’s Office to be interrogated on the incident.

14.04.2009 Oppositionist Leanid Autukhou is not employed because of his political views

The head of a district organization of the BPF Party Leanid Autukhou has already spent more than a year trying to get employed with the aid of the social employment center in Haradok.

14.04.2009 ‘Young Front’ activist Artsium Dubski beaten by riot police

The Young Front activist managed to send a letter from the pre-trial detention center. In this letter, published on the Young Front website, Artsiom Dubski says how the riot police beat him and his cell mates.

13.04.2009 BPF Party is evicted from its office

According to a letter of the Savetski district housing economy of Minsk the BPF Party must leave its office in Masherau Avenue, 8 by 8 July 2009.

09.04.2009 Prosecutor’s office refuses to bring a criminal case on beating of participants of St.Valentine’s Day action

The prosecutors’ office of Savetski district of Minsk ‘does not consider’ beating up participants of the peaceful rally of young people in the capital on St. Valentine’s Day by riot policemen ‘to be a socially dangerous act’.

08.04.2009 Supreme Court turns down Ales Mekh’s complaint

The Supreme Court turned down the complaint of the ex-candidate to the Chamber of Representatives Ales Mekh against the unlawful dismissal from job.

06.04.2009 Kobryn: youth activist gets detained for white-red-white flag

In Kobryn the police detained the local activist of Young Front Andre Vieramiuk for hanging out a white-red-white flag. At 6 p.m. on Saturday they hanged out the flag at 12-meter height on one of the buildings in the center of the city. When they wanted to go away from the place, the riot squad policemen approached them and said that some citizens complained about the white-red-white flag.

02.04.2009 ‘Young Front’ pickets House of Government on ‘Unity Day’

Activists of Young Front organization have held a picket in front of the House of government. They held a white-red-white flag and a flag of the organization, as well as the streamer ‘NO to union, NO to occupation’.