Court turns down claim by BPF Hrodna office

Hrodna Regional Court has considered the complaint against the decision by the Ministry of Justice to deny registration to the Belarusian Popular Front’s Hrodna Regional Office. The interests of the party were represented by the BPF’s central office senior secretary Uladzimer Labkovich and member of the party’s Soim Yury Chavusau.
The trial was bore a strong resemblance to the one held a few hours before, when similar complaint by the BPF ‘Adradzhennie’ was considered.
‘We consider this decision as a politically-motivated one. We view it as a restriction of our political activities in the region. The decision is not warranted by law. The court based its verdict on a document, which came into legal force several weeks after the office was denied registration. It means that we have to face an illegal judicial verdict, i.e. discrimination and restriction of the political rights of citizens,’ said Uladzimer Labkovich.
Still, the final verdict will be pronounced at 9.00 tomorrow, 23 May.
‘The progress of the trial, the behavoiur of the judge, who openly helped the representative of the Ministry of Justice, show that public associations CANNOT obtain official registration in Belarus. The registration bodies do not favour, but suppress and destroy any form of civil activity,’ says Mr.Labkovich.