20.03.2009 Forcefully drafted oppositionist denied medical examination

Ihar Salavei, activist of the “For Freedom” movement from Pinsk, forcefully drafted into the army, was taken to a Minsk hospital, but army doctors don’t find it necessary to carry out a wide examination.

The activist was found problems with heart before the drafting campaign. Medical board didn’t want to call him up for military service, but a military commissar insisted he should be drafted, milinkevich.org writes.

19.03.2009 100 Cities Say No to Minsk and Demand EU Foreign Policy

Last night, over 110 cities across Europe and worldwide, from Oslo to Istanbul, from Lisbon to Vilnius as well as in Dubai, Mexico, Pretoria and New York took to the streets against Lukashenko's unjust Belarus dictatorship, demanding a European Foreign Policy.

Activists across the continent gagged statues – symbolically preventing them from speaking freely – much like the current situation for many Belarusian citizens and leaders of democracy and oppositions movements.

19.03.2009 Amnesty International to launch reports calling for the abolition of the death penalty

On 24 March 2009, Amnesty International will release its global death penalty statistics, looking at how many people were executed or sentenced to death across the world during 2008. On the same day in a separate report, Ending executions in Europe: Towards abolition of the death penalty in Belarus, the human rights organization will call on the last state in Europe and Central Asia that still sentences people to death and executes them to follow the global trend and abolish the death penalty.

18.03.2009 Controversial decision by Prosecutor’s Office: every law has a loophole

The politically motivated draft of a number of youth activists brought forth several extremely disputable legal issues, e.g. the arrest of Zmitser Khvedaruk on 28 January, resulting in his imprisonment for participating in the 1 May rally in Minsk. Article 13.6 of the Code of Civil Procedure specifies the terms of the enforcement of administrative sentences – 3 months. Thus, the imprionment of Zmitser Khvedaruk appears to be illegal, since it started over 8 months after the verdict was passed. Considering the above-mentioned fact, Khvedaruk’s lawyer Pavel Sapelka lodged a complaint against the detention with Minsk Pershamaiski Prosecutor’s Office.

18.03.2009 Prosecutor’s office refused to initiate proceedings on Yana Palyakova’s suicide

Prosecutor’s office in Salihorsk refused to initiate criminal proceedings related to the suicide of a human rights activist Yana Palyakova. Radio Svaboda has been informed about that in the prosecutor’s office. “Inquiry is finished. There are no signs that Yana Palyakova had been incited to commit suicide,” a representative of the prosecutor’s office said.

17.03.2009 Human rights activist Ales Bialiatski addresses Belarusian Foreign Minister

‘I, Ales Bialiatski, am Chair of the Council of the Public Association Human Rights Center Viasna, closed down by verdict of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Belarus of 28 October 2003. Considering the decision of the Supreme Court a violation of the freedom of association and having failed to receive an adequate remedy on the national level, ten founders of the Public Association Human Rights Center Viasna used their constitutional right and submitted an individual complaint to the UN Human Rights Committee.

17.03.2009 Journalist Andzej Poczobut fined

Hrodna Leninski Borough Court fined representative of the Polish minority in Belarus Andzej Poczobut BYR 525,000 for participating in an unauthorized meeting in front of the Dom polski on 17 January. The journalist says the verdict by judge Natallia Kozel is illegal since the rally was provoked by Josuf Lucznik, head of the pro-government Union of Poles.

17.03.2009 Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg expresses his concern about recent facts of human rights violations in Belarus

Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg, whose country holds the EU's rotating presidency, commented on the decision concerning the EU sanctions against Belarus, following a meeting of EU foreign ministers on 16 March: ‘We have agreed that the European Union should continue its engagements in Belarus and supporting the positive events in the country. Therefore, we have agreed to prolong visa sanctions suspension for several Belarusian officials for another 9 months.

16.03.2009 Human rights activists say Paliakova’s verdict was illegal

Representatives of the Belarusian human rights community say the verdict passed on Yana Paliakova was illegal and groundless. Now, independent lawyers are trying to appeal the verdict and rehabilitate the activist, who committed suicide on 7 March, after Salihorsk Town Court found her guilty of ‘deliberately false denunciation’ (Article 400 paragraph 2 of the Criminal Code of Belarus) and sentenced her to 2.5 years of personal restraint.

16.03.2009 Presentation of new human rights edition due on 18 March

On 18 March the Belarusian Popular Front central office will host the presentation of the book ‘Akrestsina Everyday Life. Diaries by Political Prisoners’, a joint project of Belarusian youth activists and human rights activists. The edition features stories by activists that had to serve their administrative terms in Minsk Offenders Isolation Center in Akrestsin Street in 2006-2008, including UCPB leader Anatol Liabedzka, artist Aliaksei Marachkin and a number of youth activists.

16.03.2009 KGB resumes case against human rights activist Svetsik

Vitsebsk human rights activist Leanid Svetsik has received a letter from the KGB Vitsebsk regional department, saying the secret service has resumed criminal prosecution under Article 130.1 of the Criminal Code (‘stirring up international and interdenominational hatred’). According to Mr.Svetsik, the investigator failed to name the grounds for the resumption. However, he attributes it to the growing pressure against human rights activists, e.g. the negative decision concerning the registration of the Nasha Viasna human rights organization.

16.03.2009 Detention in Vitsebsk

On 15 March Vitsebsk police detained youth activist Kastus Ivanou as he was distributing leaflets in the town center. The action marking the Constitution Day was to draw public attention to the provisions of the Fundamental Law, which guarantee the right to receive true information, the right to freedom of assembly and free expression of political convictions. The leaflets featured a number of facts of abuse of the above-mentioned rights in Belarus, in Vitsebsk, in particular.

13.03.2009 Supreme Court turns down lawsuit of ‘Horizontal’ NGO against Ministry of Justice

A founder of the organization Valer Ukhnaliou said to the BelaPAN that on 11 March the Supreme Court of Belarus turned down the lawsuit of the social-patriotic civil association (SPCA) Horizontal against the refusal of the Ministry of Justice to register it.

13.03.2009 Activist of ‘European Belarus’ is persecuted for action of solidarity

Minor activist of the civil campaign European Belarus Aleh Haravy from Barysau was arrested at his lesson in lyceum.

13.03.2009 Cassation Board of the Supreme Economical Court turns down appeal of New Life Church

The lawyer of the church Siarhei Lukanin informed the BelaPAN that on 12 March the Cassation of Board of the Supreme Economical Court chaired by Ruslan Yumahuzhyn did not grant the complaints of Minsk church New Life of the Religious association of Full Evangel Christians in the Republic of Belarus against the verdict of Minsk city economical court.