The Human Rights Center “Viasna”

15.11.2011 “The honorable guest is unable to attend the Politiken Freedom Prize awarding ceremony”

This was repeated again and again during the ceremony in Copenhagen on 14 November, at which the Danish edition Politiken awarded its Freedom Prize to Ales Bialiatski and the Human Rights Center “Viasna”, headed by him. A poster with a graphic portrait of Ales Bialiatski hung on the wall to symbolize the symbolic presence of the prize-holder.

11.11.2011 Ales Bialiatski to be given new charges on 16 November

On 10 November the trial of Ales Bialiatski, Chairman of the Human Rights Center “Viasna”, continued at the Pershamaiski District Court of Minsk.

09.11.2011 A new film in support of Ales Bialiatski (video)

The trial against Mr. Ales Bialiatski, FIDH Vice-President and President of the Human Rights Center “Viasna” (Belarus), currently arbitrarily detained in relation with his human rights activities, is presently taking place in Minsk. In many States of the Eastern Europe and Central Asia region, human rights defenders are facing similar harsh repression: obstacles to freedoms of assembly and association, hindrances to NGO registration, criminalisation of unregistered organisations, obstacles of access to funding, judicial harassment and arbitrary detentions.

09.11.2011 Ales Bialiatski points at those who ordered the criminal case

"I state that this case was instigated and conducted with evident political motives, with the aim to persecute members of the Human Rights Center “Viasna”, including me, for human rights activities," - stated Ales Bialiatski on 4 November, during the third day of the trial. To confirm his words, he read some documents from the first volume of criminal case # 11081100188, which were just mentioned by the prosecutor during the study of the case.

08.11.2011 State media denigrate Bialiatski and “Viasna” all over Belarus

The state-owned newspapers “Mahiliouskiya Vedamastsi”, “Prydniaprouskaya Niva”, "Vitebski Rabochy" and "Narodnaye Slova" have published an article "How “human rights defender” "Bialiatski made a nice life for himself”. Most probably, soon this publication will appear in other state-own newspapers.

07.11.2011 A brief review of the second day of the hearing of the case of Ales Bialiatski

On November 3, 2011 in Minsk the trial of Ales Bialiatski, the head of the human rights center Viasna and vice-president of the International Federation of Human Rights continued. The International observation mission of the Committee on international control over the situation with Human Rights in Belarus followed the progress of the trial. A survey of the first day can be found here. Today's hearing was largely devoted to the examination of witnesses.

04.11.2011 Trial of Ales Bialiatski: day 3

4 November is the third day of the court hearings on the criminal case against Ales Bialiatski, Chairman of the Human Rights Center “Viasna”, vice-President of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH).

03.11.2011 Trial of Ales Bialiatski, day 2 (updated)

The trial of the Chairman of the Human Rights Center “Viasna”, vice-President of the International Federation for Human Rights Ales Bialiatski continues at the Pershamaiski District Court of Minsk.

02.11.2011 Trial of Ales Bialiatski (updated)

Extraordinary precautions have been used since 9 a.m. near the building of the Maskouski District Court of Minsk. Special police forces and several cars of the road police arrived. Private parking spaces were fenced with protective police tapes. The people who wanted to attend the trial started gathering at the entrance. At 9.30 a.m. Ales Bialiatski was guarded to the court.

20.10.2011 Viasna awarded Danish Freedom Prize

The Human Rights Center “Viasna” has been awarded the 2011 Politiken Freedom Prize, an international human rights award sponsored by the Denmark-based Politiken radical-social, liberal newspaper.

13.10.2011 Ales Bialiatski: “The time threw us a challenge. We accepted it"

This is an interview with Aliaksandr Bialiatski prepared for publication for the 15th anniversary of Human Rights Center "Viasna", which is celebrated this year. In this interview, Bialiatski tells not only about the history of the organization, the purpose of its work and his colleagues, but also about his vision of human rights protection in democratic reforms, which will doubtlessly take place in Belarus in the near future.

05.10.2011 FIDH and Viasna: Inhumane treatment and threats to the lives of Belarusian political prisoners must stop!

Paris-Minsk, 4 October 2011 – International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and its member organisation in Belarus, Human Rights Center “Viasna”, strongly condemn the inhuman treatment of political prisoners in Belarusian prisons. Reliable sources indicate that psychological and physical pressure continues on political prisoners still in detention in Belarus, including death threats, unjustified transfers and appalling health care provision.

04.10.2011 Zmitser Dashkevich writes about his time in prison

The political prisoner needs his knee to be operated. He has written about that in his letter to his godmother Natallia Yasevich. In his another letter from prison the “Young Front” leader Zmitser Dashkevich tells about the danger he faces. He calls the last 9 months behind the bars the most difficult in his life. For the first time the political prisoner mentions he want to demand a knee surgery.

04.10.2011 People are prohibited to read our website at work

Participants of the 6th yearly conference “Business Internet”, held on 3-4 October in Minsk, were shown the so-called “black-list” of national web-resources, the access to which is blocked in all state institutions of the country.