Civil society versus Europe’s last dictator

September 28th, 2011

British lawyers have launched an innovative “prosecution kit” which gives citizens throughout the world the tools to pursue Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko through the courts. Matthew Jury explains

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Belarus: Journalist convicted of defaming Lukashenko loses appeal

September 21st, 2011

A journalist convicted of defaming the president of Belarus has lost his appeal. Polish-Belarusian journalist Andrzej Poczobut from Polish daily Gazeta Wyborcza was found guilty of the defamation of President Alexander Lukashenko in July, and the Hrodna Oblast Court in western Belarus upheld the verdict against him yesterday. Poczobut was given a three year prison sentence, suspended for two years. The journalist argued that his rights were violated during the trial by KGB investigators and the prosecutor’s office.  Poczobut said he would continue appealing the conviction throughout the system, up to and including the UN.  

Belarus: 11 more political prisoners pardoned

September 14th, 2011

Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko has today pardoned 11 more political prisonerssentenced for taking part in anti-government protests on 19 December 2010. The full list of names is not yet known, but Index believes that activists Pavel Vinogradov and Fyodor Mirzayanov are among those released. Around five others remain in prison. A government press release stated that Lukashenko had been “guided by the principles of humanity”. In August, The Royal Bank of Scotland announced that it will no longer engage in “any type of capital-raising” on behalf of the government of Belarus after an Index on Censorship and Free Belarus Now campaign.

Lukashenko’s Soviet mercenaries

September 5th, 2011

Belarus is Europe’s last dictatorship. Andrej Dynko explains how the country’s president Alexander Lukashenko retains his tight grip on power

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Belarus: President orders controlled internet access in educational institutions

August 31st, 2011

Internet access in educational institutions must be under control, said Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko as he addressed educators on 29 August. Lukashenko said they and teachers should pay close attention to communication among young people online, primarily on social networks, which he labelled “a dangerous weapon” that could be used for “destructive purposes.”

Belarus: Released political prisoner claimed he was tortured

August 18th, 2011

Vladimir Yaromenok (Владимир Еременок, Уладзімер Яроменак), a Belarusian political prisoner released on 13 August following President Alexander Lukashenko’s pardoning of nine individuals convicted for the December 2010 protests in Minsk has said he was tortured while in a KGB detention unit. Yaromenok, 20, was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment in a colony with the highest security regime in May for having helped organise and participate in mass riots. He served 15-day and seven-day terms at two separate prisons before being referred to a KGB detention unit.  

Belarus: President pardons nine convicted for December protests

August 12th, 2011

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has pardoned nine of the 41 people convicted for taking part in the December 19 protests that followed his higly disputed re-election. RFE/RL’s Belarus Service reported that the nine freed had requested an amnesty, admitted taking part in the demonstrations, and pledged not to engage in such activities again. Of the nine amnestied, four have been named as Dimitry Drozd, Artem Gribkov, Serguey Kazakov and Andrei Protasenya. Two more who are thought to have been released have been named as Vladimir Loban and Alexander Klafkovsky, while the names of the remaining three remain unknown.
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Belarus: Draft law prevents citizens gathering in public

August 2nd, 2011

A draft law published in Belarus on Friday prohibits the “joint mass presence of citizens in a public place that has been chosen beforehand, including an outdoor space, and at a scheduled time for the purpose of a form of action or inaction that has been planned beforehand and is a form of public expression of the public or political sentiments or protest.” The draft adds that anyone proven to be taking part in such a gathering would be subject to 15 days of administrative arrest. The Belarusian government is continuing to develop various methods of stifling protest in the country. Demonstrators have been equally creative in finding ways to rally against President Lukashenko and the country’s economic crisis. In July, clapping protests swept the nation, forcing the concurrent Independence Day military parade to be held in silence to avoid disruption.