The Human Rights Center “Viasna”

18.12.2013 Information about torture in KGB jail is “state secret”

Upon release from the KGB detention center in March 2011 former presidential candidate Ales Mikhalevich reported numerous facts of abuse and torture, and filed a complaint with the Prosecutor’s Office urging the officials to investigate the allegations.

10.12.2013 Body of Ihar Ptsichkin exhumed

According to Ihar's relatives, the exhumation was conducted on 4 December. The results of the re-autopsy will be known in a month.

10.12.2013 Investigative Committee “sees no reasons” to punish the personnel of Mahiliou penitentiary for torture

Minsk resident Liudmila Kuchura, whose husband was tortureed with chlorine in the penitentiary No. 15 in Mahiliou, received a reply from the Investigative Committee of the Republic of Belarus to the complaint in which she requested to initiate a criminal case on this fact.

06.12.2013 Investigator ignores the demands of the prosecutor in the case concerning the death of a detainee in Svetlahorsk

Svetlahorsk district prosecutor Uladzimir Tarasenka agrees with the arguments of the human rights defenders of "Viasna" stated in the appeal against the refusal to open a criminal investigation into the death of Aliaksandr Akulich in the Svetlahorsk detention center, but the policemen A. Bachko and R. Stseshankou remain unpunished.

02.12.2013 Statement of BAJ on the Outbreak of Violence against Journalists in Ukraine

The Belarusian Association of Journalists expresses solidarity and support to our colleagues who are now trying to cover as broadly as possible the current events in Ukraine. We are indignant at the violent actions against our colleagues who perform their professional duties.

12.11.2013 Head of Homel Regional Court directs the case of Dzianis Rabianok for a new trial

It took the activist of the United Civil Party from Kalinkavichy Dzianis Rabianok seven months to succeed in protecting his rights. Back in April he was attacked by Recall that in April this year by an aggressive neighbour who sprayed pepper spray in his face.

12.11.2013 Foreigners taken to a forest near Kurapaty, beaten and threatened

The victims, Azerbaijan, Tajik and Armenian nationals, reported about mass violence by men in civilian clothes, who seized, beat and intimidated them.

11.11.2013 Policeman sentenced to 6 years in jail for squeezing out testimonies

According to the newspaper “Krychauskaya Zhyttsio”, on 31 October the Babruisk inter-district military court sentenced a Krychau policeman to 6 years years of jail under Part 3 of Art. 426 of the Criminal Code (abuse of power or authority ) and paragraph 9 of Part 2 of Art . 147 of the Criminal Code (intentional infliction of a serious bodily injury), without confiscation of property, with deprivation of the special title of "senior police sergeant", with disqualification to hold certain positions for a period of five years.

05.11.2013 Struggle against the impunity of Svetlahorsk police continues

Appeals of human rights defenders of “Viasna” forced the prosecutor of the Svetlahorsk district Uladzimir Tarasenka to cancel the decision not to institute criminal proceedings in connection with the death of the Svetlahorsk resident Aliaksandr Akulich at the detention of facility of the Svetlahorsk District Police Department.

02.11.2013 Babruisk: blogger Aleh Zhalnou punished with a fine

In the evening on 1 November Judge Natallia Charapukha finished the trial of Aleh Zhalnou and punished him with a fine of 20 basic units.

11.10.2013 Babruisk blogger Aleh Zhalnou litigates with traffic police

Aleh Zhalnou, known for his blog in which he exposed the illegal actions of the police and traffic police, is in court again. This time the local traffic police try to prove Judge Natallia Charapukha that Aleh and his son Aliaksei used physical violence against them. In their turn, The Zhalnous insist that they didn't show any resistance to the police, but have themselves become victims of abuse of powers by the traffic police.

17.09.2013 Ihar Ptichkin was beaten by riot control group

Some details about the death of a Valadarka prison inmate became known.

19.08.2013 Prosecutor General's Office bounces Young Front’s appeal on recent death in Minsk detention center

The General Prosecutor's Office did not respond to an appeal of the youth organization "Young Front" (registered in the Czech Republic) on the situation with the death of Ihar Ptsichkin in the Minsk-based detention center No. 1. Instead, Prosecutor in charge of supervision over the legality of the execution of criminal penalties, A. Malashevich, forwarded the appeal to the head of the Department of Corrections of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Lt. Col. Darashko.

09.08.2013 Babruisk: Viachaslau Sheleh got assaulted by a man who introduced himself as police major

In the evening of 8 August the activist of the Belarusian Christian DemocracyViachaslau Sheleh went to the Police Department of the Babruisk City Executive Committee in order to take his wife for an interrogation at the Investigation Committee in connection with the recent kidnapping of their daughter Natallila.