The Human Rights Center “Viasna”

25.03.2011 Mop-up operation

Attempts to arrest opposition activists preventively started since early morning.

24.03.2011 Vitsebsk police detain local opposition activists

On 24 March, Vitsebsk city police detained local opposition activist Siarhei Kavalenka for staging an unauthorized picket in the central Lenin Street.

23.03.2011 More detentions outside Minsk Maskouski Court

Four persons – youth activists Zmitser Khvedaruk, Andrus Tychyna and Illia Shyla, as well as another unidentified teenager – were detained outside Minsk Maskouski District Court at about 5 p.m.

23.03.2011 Babruisk activists detained for 25 March leaflets

Babruisk police detained four local activists – Volha Pimanava, Taisia Kabanchuk, Halina Smirnova and Maksim Ryzhkevich – as they were distributing leaflets advertising the forthcoming 25 March celebrations.

16.03.2011 Series of preventive mass detentions conducted in Minsk on March 15

The young people the police thought to be connected with the anarchist movement were detained. The majority of them were interrogated because of “the anarchists’ case” last year.

14.03.2011 Human rights defender Viktar Sazonau detained on the border

The car with a Hrodna human rights defender, Viktar Sazonau, was detained in the morning at the border crossing point Berastavitsa-Babrouniki, on the way to Poland.

14.03.2011 Homel: riot police detains journalists during flash-mob against prohibition of performance of Lyapis Trubetskoy rock band

On Sunday, 13 March, civil activists held a flash-mob in the central market of Homel to protest against the prohibition of the concert of the prominent Belarusian rock band Lyapis Trubetskoy. By the way, the fact of prohibition of the concert witnesses the trustworthiness of the information that Lyapis Trubetskoy and some more bands, and artists were put on an unofficial black list by the Belarusian authorities.

28.02.2011 Minsk police detain 7 UCP activists

Seven activists of the United Civic Party of Belarus have been detained by the police in Minsk Kastrychnistkaya Square, reports the UCPB official web-site.

15.02.2011 Vadzim Kabanchuk sentenced to 10 days of arrest

In the morning of 15 February Vadzim's mother, Taisiya Kabanchuk, was waiting for him at the Maskouski District Court of Minsk, where he was to have been taken for a trial. His friends phoned to all Minsk courts trying to find about the time and place of the trial. Only in the afternoon they were informed that the trial had already taken place, Vadzim had been sentenced to 10 days of arrest for participation in the 19 December protest action in central Minsk, and guarded to the delinquents' isolation center in Akrestsin Street.

14.02.2011 Young Front activists didn't reach KGB

The Young Front members who wanted to congratulate their imprisoned comrades on St. Valentine's Day were detained on the way to the main KGB office in Minsk. Among the detainees there was the Deputy Chairperson of the Young Front, Mikalai Dzemidzenka, who was carrying large red heard-shaped postcards.

14.02.2011 Hrodna: detention of youth activists

Young activists Veranika Lemianouskaya and Nadzeya Krapivina were detained at night in Hrodna, allegedly for posting leaflets.

14.02.2011 Activist of Belarusian Christian Democracy Vadzim Kabanchuk detained on the border

Former political prisoner Vadzim Kabanchuk, an activist of the Belarusian Christian Democracy and electioneering agent of Vital Rymasheuski, was detained on 13 February evening, while returning from Lithuania. The customs officers examined his belongings and found some newspapers. They were dissatisfied with their content and therefore detained him for more than 4 hours. They they called the police. As a result, Kabanchuk was guarded to the Ashmiany District Police Department, where a report for 'insubordination to customs officers' was drawn up. The police also tried to make Vadzim sign this document. The case was passed to court. The results of the trial will be known later.

10.02.2011 Young activists of United Civil Party detained in Minsk

The young activists of the United Civil Party were detained near the metro station Niamiha where they were handing out the Ploshcha newspaper which contains calls to release political prisoners. The detainees were guarded to the Tsentralny District Police Department.