Mahiliou Court sides with deputy in land dispute

On 8 May Judge of Leninski District Court of Mahiliou Alena Dyblenka turned down the appeal of Dzmitry Yaustratau, a dweller of the village of Niadashava-2 in Mahiliou district, against the decision of the district executive committee about the transfer of the land of general use to farmer Yury Korshunau without holding public hearings.

As it became known at the trial, there is no mechanism of account of the public opinion during the transfer of the land of general use, though the state organs are obliged to do it. This was stated by the head of the juridical land management service of Mahiliou Regional Executive Committee Eduard Prakapenka who was present at the trial as a representative of the interested persons.

Dzmitry Yaustratau doesn't agree to this decision and is going to appeal it at Mahiliou Regional Court.

"The court verdict was predictable to some extent, but I will struggle for respect to the public opinion in our state, as demanded by the present legislation. I will appeal the verdict of Leninski District Court as son as I receive its resolutive part," says Dzmitry Yaustratau.

Human rights defender Barys Bukhel states that in her verdict Judge Alena Dyblenka substituted the notion of the protection of the right to take part in publicly important decisions to the right of ownership.

"The judge stated that Yaustratau hadn't been provided with the plot of the land in question and the district executive committee hadn't taken any decisions to terminate his rights for its use or denials to present him with this plot, that's why he allegedly wasn't an interested side in the case.

However, Mr. Yaustratau demanded that the court abolish the decision of the district executive committee about lending the plot of the land to the farmer not for this reason, but due to the violation of his right and the right of other people to take part in the decision-making concerning this procedure," says Barys Bukhel.

The human rights defender states that Mahiliou Regional Court abolished the ruling of Leninski District Court and returned the case for the second trial.

It's worth mentioning that farmer Yury Korshunau is the head of Mahiliou Regional Farmers' Association and a deputy of the village and the district councils of deputies.