Belarusian authorities exceeded all moral limits in haunting of Zmitser Dashkevich and Andrei Sannikau
STATEMENT
by Human Rights Center “Viasna”
13 December 2011, Minsk
On 11 December 2011 a provocative report about prisoners of
conscience, a former presidential candidate Andrei Sannikau and the leader of
the youth organization “Young Front” Dzmitry Dashkevich was shown in the Sunday
issue of the TV program “In the Focus of Attention” on the state TV channel "Belarus-1".
The Human Rights Center "Viasna" believes that demonstration of such
video content on the state TV once again highlighted the political motivation
of their persecution.
This broadcast is one of the links in the chain of provocations towards
A.Sannikau and Z.Dashkevich, organized by the Belarusian security services and
aimed at exercising moral pressure, discrediting and creating a real threat to
their life and health in prison.
This report indicates that the Belarusian authorities are ready to cross all
possible moral boundaries in the organized campaign of harassment of A.Sannikau
and Z.Dashkevich. Demonstration of such materials witnesses a complete
professional and human degradation of the administration of the Belarusian
State TV and Radio Company, the director of the TV channel “Belarus-1” and the people who prepared the
report.
The Belarusian authorities, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the
administration of the penal institutions where A.Sannikau and Z.Dashkevich are
kept bear personal responsibility for the fate, life and health of the prisoners.
The Human Rights Center “Viasna” once again calls on the Belarusian authorities
to:
-
stop all provocative actions against A.Sannikau and Zmitser Dashkevich;
- immediately
admit lawyers and close relatives to the prisoners;
-
immediately and unconditionally release all prisoners of conscience and
political prisoners who are still kept in Belarusian prisons.
