26.02.2010 Political prisoners Autukhovich and Asipenka to stand trial on March 10

The date of the trial over Vaukavysk businessman Mikalai Autukhovich and former army officer Uladzimir Asipenka has been announced today.

The trial is to start in the Supreme Court on March 10, secretary of judge Alyaksei Tsyatsyukhin, who will conduct the trial, told this the lawyers.

22.02.2010 Oppositionist in Vitsebsk sentenced in his absence to 7 days of incarceration

An activist of the Belarusian Christian Democracy Party Ales Halavan’ has received the decision of the court by post.

03.02.2010 Criminal case of Yury Kazak to be considered by court of appeal

The criminal case of the Belarusian Christian Democracy’s Navahradak activist Yury Kazak will be considered under appellate proceedings by Hrodna Regional Court on 18 February, says Mr. Kazak’s legal counsel Pavel Sapelka.

18.11.2009 Homel Regional Court recalls fine to local activist

Judge Vasil Biahun of Homel Regional Court has ruled to reverse a 700,000-rouble fine to Valery Rybchanka, local opposition Communist leader, his civil case being sent for reconsideration at Homel Chyhunachny Court. The activist was fined for mere intent to participate in a memorial picket on 19 October. Mr. Rybchanka claims he was not taking part in the demonstration at the moment he was arrested, since he was taking photos of it.

31.07.2009 Court denied human rights activists and took side of “Sovetskaya Belorussia”

The Minsk City Court dismissed the claim of Halina Yubko, head of the initiative “Women against Lawlessness in Courts and Procuracy” against the newspaper of Lukashenka’s Administration.

The Savetski district court of Minsk dismissed the claim against “Sovetsakaya Belorusia” a month ago, Radio Svaboda reports.

Halina Yubko found offensive the information spread by the newspaper in February about the initiative “Women against Lawlessness in Courts and Procuracy”. The newspaper wrote that women unsatisfied with court judgements allegedly “press courts with tears and cries”. Halina Yubko, found a victim by court, can’t reach a solution of case for some years, said at the trial she “had used only legal means and was seeking the rights guaranteed by the Constitution”.

29.07.2009 Authorities planning to make entrepreneurs’ trial closed, says Aleh Volchak

The authorities are doing their best to make the trial of the three Vaukavyssk entrepreneurs Mikalai Autukhovich, Yury Liavonau and Uladzimir Asipenka a closed one, said lawyer and ex-investigator Aleh Volchak during a press-conference on 28 July in Minsk. ‘With the preliminary investigation being carried out in secret, with the lawyers having been forced to sign a pledge of secrecy, I suppose that the trial will be a closed one. This is what their tactics are about,’ said Mr.Volchak.

21.07.2009 Participant of Process of 14 Mikhail Subach amnestied

Mikhail Subach was granted amnesty yet on July 15, but he learnt this only on Friday.

We remind that the Process of 14 is a case under article 342 of the Criminal Code of Belarus instigated against participants of a peaceful protest rally of entrepreneurs held in Minsk on January 10, 2008.

For participation in this rally the Tsentralny district court of Minsk sentenced youth activist Andrei Kim to 1.5 years in penal colony (he was released in August 2008). Activist of the civil campaign “European Belarus” Alyaksandr Barazenka was sentenced to one year of restraint of liberty without sending him to a penal facility, he was kept in a detention center from October 27 to December 9, 2008.

02.07.2009 ARCHE extremism case terminated

Brest Maskouski Court has terminated the legal prosecution of the ARCHE analytical magazine for alledged propaganda of extremism after the local KGB department declared they would not insist on putting the charge on the defendant. According to an official letter recieved by ARCHE, the hearing was closed, the judge and the secretary being the only persons present.

02.07.2009 Supreme Court reaffirms decision to deny registration to Young Democrats

The Supreme Court of Belarus has reaffirmed the decision by the Ministry of Justice to disallow registration to the Young Democrats political party due to a number of misspellings in the body of the application. The founders of the party are sure the decision is groundless, since the few insignificant flaws could have been easily corrected upon the request of the Ministry of Justice. In their reply to the application, the registration officials have also stressed that the organization's name does not correspond to its Charter. The Supreme Court did not take this into consideration, but suported the stance of the Ministry in general.

25.06.2009 Opposition activist Uladzimir Katsora went on dry hunger strike in prison

On June 25, the judge of the Tsentralny district court of Homel found guilty five participants of a peaceful action of solidarity with kidnapped general Yury Zakharanka.

Opposition activists Pyotr Kuznyatsou, Vasiky Palyakou, Anatol Paplauny and a namesake of kidnapped former interior minister Yury Zakharanka were fined 700,000 Belarusian rubles, Radio Svaboda reports.

Uladzimir Katsora, regional coordinator of the “For Freedom” movement was arrested for three days. Protesting, the politician declared a dry hunger strike in the courtroom.

17.06.2009 Lawsuit against Sovetskaya Belorussiya turned down

Minsk Savetski Court has turned down the claim by the civil activist Halina Yubko against the Sovetskaya Belorussiya major pro-government newspaper and its journalist Viktar Panamarou, following the publication of an article ‘providing a biased coverage’ of the civil campaign headed by Mrs.Yubko. The activist says she is going to appeal the verdict at Minsk City Court.

16.06.2009 Female activist to sue major pro-government newspaper Sovetskaya Belorussiya

On 16 June Minsk Savetski Court has commenced hearings of Halina Yubko’s lawsuit against the Sovetskaya Belorussiya newspaper. The activist claims that the newspaper has degraded her honour and dignity by providing a biased coverage of the civil initiative by a number of females fighting for the protection of the rights of their convicted friends and relatives. During a preliminary hearing the defendant said the group of women mentioned in the article had nothing to do with the initiative represented by Mrs.Yubko.

16.06.2009 Punishment to two participants of Process of 14 mitigated

The Tsentralny district court of Minsk considered suggestions of militia officers to mitigate punishment to Ales Straltsou and Ales Charnyshou.

As Radio Svaboda reports, they guys must have served the remaining term of restraint of liberty (one year, two months and fifteen days). The court changed restraint of liberty to correctional labour. They young men must pay 15 per cent of their payment to the state during this period.

Straltsou and Charnyshou were sentenced to 1.5 years of restraint of liberty in the Case of 14 last year. They were accused of organizing riots during rallies of entrepreneurs.

Though now liberty Straltsou and Charnyshou is not restricted, they don’t have the right to leave the country.

27.05.2009 Another convict for General Zakharanka memorial rally

On 26 May Homel Tsentralny Court convicted another participant of the 7 May General Zakharanka memorial picket in downtown Homel. The human rights and pro-democratic activist Anatol Paplauny was summonsed to the court after he had refused to let a policeman in his private house.

27.05.2009 Illya Shyla fined 625 dollars for covering “School for all” rally

An administrative commission of Salihorsk district executive committee has fined a minor activist Illya Shyla 50 basic units (1 mln 750 thousand rubles) for a picket in which he hadn’t taken part.

The ruling of the commission was passed in absence of the Young Front activist. Illya Shyla finds the decision absurd and is set to challenge it in the court, the website saligorsk.org writes.

As we have informed, on May 5 in the framework of the “School for all” campaign Salihorsk branch of the Young Front held a picket in support of their forcibly drafted leader Ivan Shyla in the central square of the city. Ivan Shyla hadn’t been given an opportunity to finish the school.