The Human Rights Center “Viasna”

News for July 2020

21.07.2020 Valery Tsapkala loses registration appeal in Supreme Court hearing

The Supreme Court confirmed at yesterday’s hearing the July 14 decision by the Central Election Commission, which rejected the presidential nomination bid of Valery Tsapkala, one of Aliaksandr Lukashenka’s key rivals in the August 9 election.

20.07.2020 Beaten and fined: over 40 journalists detained in 2 months of Belarusian protests

Over 40 representatives of the press have been detained when covering peaceful protests in the last two months, tut.by said. Some of them were beaten, while a few were convicted of “illegal protesting” and “resisting arrest”.

20.07.2020 UN human rights chief urges Belarus to release peaceful protesters

According to information from various NGO and media sources, over 300 people, including a dozen journalists covering the protests, were detained by police during protests on 14 and 15 July.

17.07.2020 Picks of the week

25 people detained after filing complaints with the Central Election Commission; RFE/RL reporter beaten and charged with resisting arrest; four people held in criminal case following election protest in Minsk

17.07.2020 Amnesty International: Misogyny and discrimination fuels vicious campaign against activists ahead of election

The Belarusian authorities must halt their crackdown on all dissent ahead of the presidential election on 9 August, and immediately end their vicious campaign of targeting women activists and family members of political opposition representatives using tactics fueled by misogyny, Amnesty International said today.

17.07.2020 Human Rights Council extends mandate on Belarus

The Human Rights Council this morning adopted six resolutions in which it, among other actions, extended the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus.

16.07.2020 Election marred by unprecedented violence, domestic observers say

On July 15, representatives of “Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections”, the only domestic non-partisan election observation initiative in Belarus, held an online press conference to report on the first phase of observation of the August 9 presidential election.

16.07.2020 2020 Presidential Election. Report on the nomination and registration of presidential candidates

Out of seven persons who were nominated as presidential candidates and submitted signatures collected for their nomination, five were registered as candidates. The registration process was marked by violations of the standards of fair elections.

15.07.2020 Amnesty International: Mass arrests during peaceful gatherings violated protesters’ rights and provoked violence

The people who have gathered to denounce the elimination of opposition presidential candidates from the election list have every right to take to the streets. Peaceful protest is an essential way of exercising the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and expression.

15.07.2020 EU deplores "arbitrary exclusion of candidates" in Belarus election

Statement by the High Representative/Vice-President Josep Borrell on the non-registration of presidential candidates

15.07.2020 ODIHR will not deploy election observation mission to Belarus due to lack of invitation

The Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) has informed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus that the lack of an invitation to observe the upcoming presidential election has precluded ODIHR from observing the ongoing election process.

15.07.2020 280 detained in protests across Belarus

At least 280 people were detained by the police yesterday evening after hundreds demonstrated against the Central Election Commission’s decision to disqualify two of the incumbent Aliaksandr Lukashenka’s key rivals in the upcoming presidential election.

14.07.2020 Lukashenka’s key rivals removed from elections

The Central Election Commission has declined to register Viktar Babaryka and Valery Tsapkala, making two of Aliaksandr Lukashenka’s key rivals ineligible to run for President.

13.07.2020 Russian national facing charges in Tsikhanouski case

Dmitry Popov, moderator of several social media accounts affiliated with Siarhei Tsikhanouski’s YouTube channel “A Country For Living”, has been charged under Part 1, Art. 342 of the Criminal Code (preparation for or active participation in group actions that grossly violate public order).

10.07.2020 International community must continue scrutinizing human rights situation ahead of Belarus election, says UN expert

The UN's human rights expert on Belarus today called for international support for human rights defenders in the East European country as crackdowns on peaceful protests spread ahead of the 9 August presidential election.