The Human Rights Center “Viasna”

News for April 2017

29.04.2017 Analytical review of administrative trials on March 27 in Minsk (Infographics)

Analytical review of court hearings and access to justice in Minsk during the administrative trials held on March 27 following mass arrests of protesters on 25 and 26 March 2017

28.04.2017 Former political prisoner Viachaslau Kasinerau fined 115 rubles

The Maskoŭski District Court of Minsk sentenced yesterday Viachaslau Kasinerau to a fine of 115 rubles (EUR 56).

27.04.2017 Monitoring report on "Chernobyl Way-2017" street action in Minsk, 26 April

On April 26, 2017 traditional street action on the anniversary of the Chernobyl accident in 1986 took place in Minsk.

26.04.2017 Human rights defender Tatsiana Reviaka fined 460 rubles

The Court of Minsk’s Centraĺny district completed today hearing the administrative charges against human rights activist Tatsiana Reviaka.

26.04.2017 16 persons said to face charges of ‘organizing an illegal armed group’. Updated list of defendants

According to a reliable source, 16 persons currently held in the ‘rioting case’ have faced additional charges of ‘organizing an illegal armed group’ (Art. 287 of the Criminal Code).

26.04.2017 BAHRAIN: Appeal to release Nabeel Rajab and Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja and concern over their deteriorating health

Joint appeal signed by 63 organisations around the world to release human rights defenders Nabeel Rajab and Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja who both require adequate medical care

24.04.2017 Analytical review of detentions in Minsk in March 2017 (infographics)

From March 27 to April 13, the Human Rights Center "Viasna" collected and processed 130 questionnaires from individuals whose rights were violated for exericsing freedom of expression and the right to peaceful assembly.

21.04.2017 Political prisoner Viachaslau Kasinerau freed before trial

Political prisoner Viachaslau Kasinerau has been released today, after the Maskoŭski District Court of Minsk ordered to replace his pre-trial detention by a release on own recognizance.

19.04.2017 14 Belarusian judges earlier on EU sanctions list involved in new judicial harassment

Fourteen Belarusian judges previously blacklisted by the EU for their role in the political persecution following the 2010 presidential election have been involved in more cases of judicial harassment against critics of the regime.

18.04.2017 19 persons still in custody in ‘rioting case’

According to latest reports, 19 persons remain in custody in the case of ‘preparing mass riots’, as of April 17. All of them have been charged under Part 3 of Article 293 of the Criminal Code.

18.04.2017 Human rights defender Pavel Levinau sentenced to 15 days in jail

Human rights activist Pavel Levinau has been sentenced in absentia to 15 days of administrative detention on charges of involvement in illegal demonstrations on 25 and 26 March in Viciebsk, press service of the Belarusian Association of Journalists said.

14.04.2017 Statement: Release Political Prisoner Dzmitry Paliyenka

Joint statement of Belarus human rights organizations

14.04.2017 Expert Conclusion on Prosecution of Dzmitry Paliyenka

We learnt that on April 7, 2017 the Zavodski district court of Minsk considered the file of the body supervising behavior of the convicted (most likely it was the police department of the Zavodski district) and overturned the suspension of enforcement of the penalty imposed on the civil activist Dzmitry Paliyenka. He is to be sent to the correctional colony to serve a term of deprivation of freedom for one year and a half (including the time he has already stayed under arrest before the trial in 2016).

14.04.2017 Human Rights Watch Report on March Events in Belarus

The international organization Human Rights Watch has recently published a monitoring report on mass arrests and beatings of protesters, journalists and human rights defenders on the Liberty Day.

14.04.2017 UN HRC Finds Violation of the Rights of the Abducted Politician Yury Zakharanka

The Committee on Human Rights of the UN considered the individual complaint from the politician’s mother Uliyana Zakharanka and his daughter Alena filed in 2014. Finally, the Committee ruled that the rights of the disappeared politician and of his relatives have been violated. The decision was sent on April 11 to the lawyers of the Belarusian Documentation Center, who reported it at a press conference on April 13.