INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

BELARUS UPDATE
Edited by Victor Cole

Vol. 4, No. 40
October 2001

IN THIS ISSUE:

- U.S.: Freedom Of Expression Under Severe Strain in Belarus
- BAJ Demands Open Trial Of Journalist's Abductors
- U.S. Urges To Redouble Efforts To Implement OSCE Commitments
- Regime Welcomes Anti-Terrorism Resolution, Continues To Sell Arms
- Police Break Up Youth Rally, Detain 11 Activists
- Unauthorized Picket Dispersed In Mogilev
- Human Rights Activist Sentenced To Five Days Of Imprisonment
- Two Local Opposition Activists Stand Trial
- Trial Of Independent Newspaper Postponed
- "No Road On Innocent Victims Bones!"
- Opposition Party Receives Second Warning
- Law-Enforcers Stand Trial In Minsk
- Son Of Former Banker Receives Mild Sentence
- Lukashenko Names "Compromise" Prime Minister-Designate
- Belarus Hopes To Restore Cooperation With Europe

U.S.: FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION UNDER SEVERE STRAIN IN BELARUS

On September 25, Orest Deychakiwsky, staff advisor of the CSCE/Helsinki Commission Office, delivered the U.S. Statement on Freedom of Expression at the OSCE Human Dimension Implementation Meeting in Warsaw, in which he cited the murders of journalists in Ukraine, Spain, Serbia, Georgia and Belarus as an evidence that media freedom is "under severe strain, if not outright attack." "The United States calls upon each of the governments concerned to find the killers -- no matter who they are -- and punish them to the fullest extent of the law. Anything less is to encourage further 'violence against our voices of conscience," Deychakiwsky said. He also voiced U.S. concerns about other threats to freedom of expression, including criminal defamation and insult laws, outright censorship of the media, intimidation of journalists, structural censorship through taxation or government control of media facilities, the extension of print media controls to Internet Web pages, and mandatory re-registration of all media outlets.

BAJ DEMANDS OPEN TRIAL OF JOURNALIST'S ABDUCTORS

Mikhail Pastukhov, a former Constitutional Court Justice and now the director of the Media Defense Center of the Belarusian Association of Journalists, believes that the trial of Valery Ignatovich and Maksim Malik, both former officers of the Almaz (Diamond) Special-Assignment Police Force, Aleksey Guz, former student of the Police Academy, and Sergei Savushkin, a former convict, who are accused of committing seven murders, five military assaults, and two abductions, including the kidnapping of journalist Dmitry Zavadsky, scheduled for October 23 in the Minsk Region Court, should be open. In an interview to Belapan, Pastukhov said that the authorities most likely will use the trial to show the democratic international community and the domestic opposition some progress in investigating the disappearances of political opponents but by all means will try to avoid publicity.

Separately, Sovetskaya Belarusiya, a newspaper funded by the Presidential Administration, reported that this past September, the team of Almaz won first prize during the military exercises held in Moscow by special subdivisions of the Russian Interior Ministry. Lukashenko's fellows were said to be particularly good at the assault course and were awarded a new VAZ-5 automobile. (Nasha Svaboda/ Belapan/Sovetskaya Belarusiya, October 1, 4)

U.S. URGES TO REDOUBLE EFFORTS TO IMPLEMENT OSCE COMMITMENTS

"The atrocities of September 11 have brought about a newfound sense of togetherness to fight the ruthlessness of terrorism, wherever it may occur," said U.S. Ambassador Joseph Presel on September 27 in the U.S. closing statement at the OSCE Human Dimension Implementation Meeting in Warsaw. Amb. Presel went on to urge the delegates to redouble their efforts "to ensure that these attacks strengthen, not undermine the implementation of OSCE commitments to those freedoms which were attacked." Following are excerpts from the Presel's statement regarding Belarus:

"In Belarus, where ODIHR [the OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights] concluded that the September 9 Presidential election 'failed to meet the OSCE commitments for democratic elections,' government retributions continue against citizens who exercised their right to act as independent election observers. In the weeks since the election, independent observers have come under continued harassment and persecution. Many have been arrested and detained for hours on no charges whatsoever. Student observers have been expelled from universities and conscripted, and government employees, including schoolteachers, have been fired, simply for taking part in independent election observation efforts, an activity which is a right, according to OSCE commitments." The full text of the statement can be found at: http://usinfo.state.gov/products/washfile/rights.shtml

REGIME WELCOMES ANTI-TERRORISM RESOLUTION, CONTINUES TO SELL ARMS

On October 1, the Belarusian Foreign Ministry welcomed U.N. Security Council Resolution #1373 against the international terrorism. "Belarus supports the U.N. Security Council's resolution against the terrorism and will continue to demonstrate with concrete deeds its commitment to an intensive efforts to build an international coalition to combat terrorism," said Pavel Latushko, Foreign Ministry spokesman. These comments were made at the time when the Lukashenko regime remains on the list of countries selling weapons and ammunition to regimes which harbor terrorists. According to British media sources, Iraq's diplomatic mission in Belarus has been tasked with negotiating arms deals. Belarus is also believed to have had a hand in upgrading Iraqi air-defense systems, and has provided training for military personnel from several Arab countries. According to Israeli intelligence, Palestinians fight with Belarusian-made weapons and ammunition. This year, Belarus is expecting to compete fiercely with Bulgaria to win the East European seat on the powerful UN's Security Council. The Security Council, the top U.N. decision-making body, is made up of 15 members: Russia, China, France, Britain and the United States which have permanent seats, and 10 nonpermanent members who are elected to two-year terms. [Belarus lost its bid for a seat on the UN Security Council to Bulgaria by overwhelming majority vote on October 9, 2001]. (Itar-Tass, October 2)

POLICE BREAK UP YOUTH RALLY, DETAIN 11 ACTIVISTS

On October 2, the police broke up an unauthorized protest held by the Malady (Youth) Front, the youth wing of the BPF Adradzhenne, outside the Minsk Automobile Factory, hauling off 11 demonstrators, including Pavel Severinets, the organization's chair, reported Nasha Svaboda, an independent newspaper. About 30 members of the Malady Front tried to distribute leaflets protesting the government's alleged plans to sell the plant to Russia's Siberian Aluminum industrial group. The young activists accused the government of trying to reward Russian oligarchs for purportedly supporting Alexander Lukashenko's re-election. "We wanted to open the workers' eyes to the fact that Belarus's largest enterprises are going to Russian financial circles," said activist Andrei Denisevich. All detainees were taken to the Zavodsky District Internal Affairs Directorate, where they were searched and interrogated. The Malady Front press service reported that the activists were verbally and physically abused while in detention.

Last month, the Belarusian independent media informed that Russian businessman Oleg Deripaska discussed with the Lukashenko government the purchase of a controlling stake in the factory. RFE/RL's Belarusian Service reported that according to Eduard Padalyak, the Factory's deputy director, a special commission is currently working on a plan to sell the plant. As of day, the Belarusian authorities have not disclosed any plans to privatize the factory or other huge plants. (Belapan/ Nasha Svaboda, October 2-5)

UNAUTHORIZED PICKET DISPERSED IN MOGILEV

On September 30, about thirty opposition activists wearing T-shirts with portraits of disappeared politicians took part in an unauthorized picket "We Want to Know the Truth" in Mogilev. They were calling on the regime to release information about vanished opposition leaders and journalist Dmitry Zavadsky. Anatoly Lebedko, chair of the United Civic Party, Vladimir Gaidukov, Valery Sivukho, and Alexander Girkin, all members of the UCP's local branch, were brought to a police station, where the police reports were filed on them on charges of violating Art. 167, par. 1, of the Administrative Offenses Code (participation in mass actions that violate public order). Lebedko was also accused of disobedience to the police. (Nasha Svaboda, October 5)

HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVIST SENTENCED TO FIVE DAYS OF IMPRISONMENT

On October 1, Paulina Panasuk, an activist of the Brest branch of Viasna Human Rights Center, was sentenced to five days' imprisonment under Art 167, par. 1 (organization and participation in mass actions which violated public order). On August 19, the girl was arrested for distributing Nasha Svaboda, an independent newspaper, and making derogatory remarks about a possible Lukashenko's re-election. Paulina is also facing up to 15 days of administrative arrest for "civil contempt" because she ignored the summons to appear in court on September 7. (Viasna Human Rights Center, October 2)

TWO LOCAL OPPOSITION ACTIVISTS STAND TRIAL

On October 4, Leonid Trukhanovich was reprimanded by the Baranovichi City Court for taking part in an unauthorized opposition action "Chain of People Who Cares" which was held on September 17. The trial of Ales Pikula, chair of the Baranovichi branch of the BPF Adradzhenne,
was postponed until October 9 after the defendant demanded a legal counsel. (Viasna Human Rights Center, October 1-5)

TRIAL OF INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER POSTPONED

On September 27, Judge Valery Zhandarov of the Belarusian Supreme Economic Court ruled to postpone the hearing of the case about the closure of Pahonya, Grodno-based independent newspaper until October 5, due to the fact that the Grodno Region Prosecutor Office "failed to submit all necessary documentation." In fact, Lilia Bogdan, head of the State Press Committee legal department, announced in the courtroom that the Committee decided to stop the legal action against the newspaper on the grounds that in accordance with Art. 5 of the Law On Press and Other Media", a newspaper can be closed by court decision after receiving two warnings during one year and Pahonya has been warned only once. Commenting on the situation Nikolai Markevich, Pahonya's editor-in-chief, said that it is a politically-motivated show-trial and that the accusations against the newspaper are legally ungrounded. On September 22, the Grodno Region Prosecutor Office issued a written warning to Pahonya for "slandering the Belarusian president" under Art 367, part 1, of the Belarusian Penal Code. Ten days earlier, the Grodno Region Prosecutor Office seized 8,132 copies of the issue #36 of the newspaper for publishing an article titled "I promised, I promise, I will promise!" about Lukashenko's re-election. The issue #37 of the newspaper was also confiscated. (Nasha Svaboda, October 1)

"NO ROAD ON INNOCENT VICTIMS BONES!"

About forty prominent Belarusian political figures and writers, including Rigor Baradulin, Vasil Bykov, Nil Gilevich, Artur Volsky, Vladimir Orlov, Radim Goretsky, Stanislav Shushkevich, Vintsuk Vyachorka, Pavel Severinets, joined a nation-wide public initiative titled "Save Kurapaty," in a protest against the authorities' plans to broaden a local highway and to desecrate the site of mass graves of thousands of victims of the Stalinist repressions in the 1930s. On October 4, Mikhail Borovoi, a newly appointed Belarusian minister of transportation, visited Kurapaty to study the situation on the spot and ordered to suspend construction for two weeks "due to the necessity of additional archaeological examination," reported Nasha Svaboda. During this period, a group of archaeologists from the Institute of History at the National Academy of Sciences is expected to examine the site and make a new map of burial places. Borovoi promised that if human remains were found, they would be reburied. The activists of the Malady (Youth) Front and the Belarusian Party of Freedom continue to hold a 24-hour vigil near the site. (Belarusskaya Delovaya Gazeta, Nasha Svaboda, October 3, 5)

OPPOSITION PARTY RECEIVES SECOND WARNING

On October 3, the Belarusian Justice Ministry issued a second warning to the BPF Adradzhenne party for using the letterhead of the BPF Adradzhenne movement. The party considers the warning illegal and is planning to appeal the warning in court. It also intends to sue the authorities for the tenfold increase of the office rent. (Nasha Svaboda, October 1)

LAW-ENFORCERS STAND TRIAL IN MINSK

On October 2, the Oktyabrsky District Court of Minsk started considering the criminal case initiated against five police officers, former employees of the Pervomaisky District Internal Affairs Directorate of Minsk, accused of exceeding their authority, physically abusing the detainees, illegal possession of firearms, obtaining the testimony from their victims by means of torture and threats, and bribing the entrepreneurs. The defendants pleaded not guilty. (Nasha Svaboda, October 1)

SON OF FORMER BANKER RECEIVES MILD SENTENCE

On October 4, Judge Petr Kirkovsky of the Centralny District Court of Minsk sentenced Sergei Vinnikov, younger son of Tamara Vinnikova, a former chair of the Belarus National Bank who now lives in exile in England, to a 2-year suspended sentence on drug trafficking charges under Art. 328, para 3 of the Belarusian Criminal Code, an offence usually punishable by up to 10 years in prison. Vinnikov and Yonas Arlauskas were arrested on March 21, 2001, in Minsk while trying to sell five grams of heroin. Local observers believe that such a mild sentence could be explained by the fact that ahead of the presidential elections Vinnikova was keeping a very low profile, refusing to reveal any information about Alexander Lukashenko's secret private accounts. On September 5, in a short interview to RFE/RL, Vinnikova maintained that the information that she knows anything about Lukashenko's secret foreign accounts is just rumors. (RFE/RL, Nasha Svaboda, October 5)

OPPOSITION LEADER UNABLE TO OBTAIN NEW TRAVEL DOCUMENT

Nikolai Statkevich, chair of the Belarusian Social Democratic Party (BSDP), or Narodnaya Hramada, is facing problems with traveling abroad. Statkevich is not allowed to leave the country because his travel documents have expired and the authorities have refused to renew them. Ordinarily, the procedure takes about 30 days, but when Statkevich arrived to the Pervomaisky District Internal Affairs Directorate to pick up his documents on October 3, he was told the KGB ordered to deny the renewal. (Charter 97, October 1)

-AT HOME IN BELARUS-

LUKASHENKO NAMES "COMPROMISE" PRIME MINISTER-DESIGNATE

On October 1, Alexander Lukashenko presented to the Council of Ministers, Gennady Novitsky, 52, his prime minister-designate, and said the appointee was a "compromise figure." Lukashenko called Novitsky who served most recently as a deputy premier in charge of the construction industry, "a team player, a professional, and a hard worker." President said that Novitsky was chosen in part because he had worked in the past with Vladimir Goncharik, chair of the Federation of Trade Unions of Belarus who challenged Lukashenko in the September 9 presidential elections, and Vasily Leonov, Goncharik's campaign chief and founder of "For New Belarus," an unregistered civil-rights movement for election of a new president. "The opposition, I hope, will also support this candidate," Lukashenko said. Novitsky, whose appointment must be approved by the Council of Republic, the upper chamber of the National Assembly of Belarus, will replace Vladimir Yermoshin. The same day, the Belarusian leader signed a decree appointing Viktor Kamenkov the chair of the Belarusian Supreme Economic Court and Viktor Golovanov as the Minister of Justice. (Belapan/ Belarusskaya Delovaya Gazeta, October 1-3)

BELARUS HOPES TO RESTORE COOPERATION WITH EUROPE

On October 4, Alexander Lukashenko expressed hope to restore normal relations with Europe. "The new political situation, which emerged after the presidential elections, provides wide possibilities for Belarus for restoring a full-scale political dialogue with the European Union and member-states of the organization," said Lukashenko during a meeting with Foreign Minister Mikhail Khvostov. According to the Belarusian leader, "the international monitoring of elections clearly showed that the European Union does not intend to politically isolate Belarus." He instructed the foreign minister to actively work with all European Union members in order to restore normal relations and urged "concrete talks with ambassadors of EU member-states on political and economic relations." Lukashenko also called to cooperate with NATO in drafting a bilateral agreement on security guarantees. (Itar-Tass, October 4)

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For daily updates, visit our partners website, Charter 97, www.charter97.org with news in Belarusian, Russian, and English.

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The Belarus Update is a regular news bulletin of the Belarus Human Rights Support Project of the International League for Human Rights. The League, now in its 60th year, is New York-based human rights NGO in consultative status with the United Nations.

The Belarus project was established to support Belarusian citizens in making their cases before the U.S. government and public and international fora and intergovernmental organizations regarding Alexander Lukashenko's wholesale assault on human rights and the rule of law in Belarus.

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