Information on torture of participants of peaceful actions passed to international organizations

The Human Rights Center Viasna collected information about the facts of tortures and inhuman treatment of the detained participants of the peaceful actions held on 9 and 16 September 2009. The lawyers also prepared 6 complaints to the Tsentralny district prosecutor’s office of Minsk against the unlawful police actions and questioned some eyewitnesses of the tortures.

On 12 October the compiled materials were directed to the International Federation of Human Rights and will be passed to the OMCT (World Organization against Torture) and the UN Committee against Torture with the assistance of the FIDH representative in Geneva to get an appropriate international reaction.

During the few last years the prosecutor’s office hasn’t given the due legal evaluation to unlawful actions of the police and refused to bring criminal cases against the police officers who used tortures towards participants of the mass actions held by the opposition. Now human rights defenders hope that these facts will receive the due attention not only in international organizations, but also in the prosecutorial organs of the Republic of Belarus.

Bear in mind that the HRC Viasna has already submitted to the UN Committee against Torture
two alternative reports on implementation of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment.

Click the link for seeing the complete texts of the complaints and the testimonies of the eyewitnesses.