INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

BELARUS UPDATE
Edited by Victor Cole

Vol. 4, No. 41
October 2001

IN THIS ISSUE:

BELARUS PLEDGES ITS SUPPORT TO ANTI-TERRORIST CAMPAIGN

On October 9, the Belarusian foreign ministry issued a statement expressing support for the U.S.-led air strikes on Afghanistan, which seek to "eradicate terrorism." "Terrorism is an evil that must be eradicated. In those conditions, the use of force is inevitable, and we consider the U.S.-led anti-terrorist campaign under that angle," the statement read. The Soviet-style regime of iron-fisted Alexander Lukashenko, which is generally vehemently anti-American, now considers itself "an integral part of the anti-terrorist coalition," also joined by Russia. It urged the international community to use force judiciously to prevent the suffering of innocents.

On October 10, during a speech at the National Assembly of Belarus, Lukashenko said that terrorists should receive the most severe punishment. He said that the State Security Committee has prepared a draft of the new law on terrorism prevention, which will soon be submitted to the parliament for consideration.

On October 8, security council chiefs from Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, linked by a mutual security accord, discussed ways to safeguard their countries during the U.S.-led anti-terrorist campaign against Afghanistan and to combat terrorists' financial sponsors, Vladimir Rushaylo, chief of the Russian Security Council, told RIA-Novosti. Anti-terrorist efforts were not in any way aimed against Islam, Rushaylo stressed, addressing concerns that the U.S.-led campaign could lead to a surge of anti-Muslim sentiment in the former Soviet states. Rushaylo said that the rapid-reaction forces of the CIS collective security organization, including 400-member battalions, soon would hold a command and staff exercise in Kyrgyzstan. Last year, the six ex-Soviet states agreed on a long-term mutual security plan to bolster the fight against Islamic fundamentalism in the volatile Central Asia Region. (RIA-Novosti, Belapan, October 8-10)

…WHILE STARTING MISSILE DEFENSE TRAINING OF IRAQI OFFICERS

Vremya Novostei, a Russian newspaper, and Belarusskaya Delovaya Gazeta, an independent Belarusian newspaper, reported on October 5 that twenty Iraqi officers have arrived in Belarus for a two-year training course at the Belarusian Supreme Military Academy. All of them serve in the Iraqi Air Defense Forces. In Minsk, they will be taught to use the advanced anti-missile S-300 systems. The training would be conducted in English. Each officer's training in Belarus will cost Iraq $2,500 a month. The agreement on training the officers of the Iraqi armed forces was reached in May this year during an Iraqi delegation visit to Belarus. On September 27, an invitation for ten officers of the Iraqi army was sent to the Belarusian embassy in Iraq. Later on, an additional invitation was sent for another ten Iraqi officers. In addition to passport data of the Iraqi servicemen, this list also contained the information about their places of birth, in particular, Baghdad, Al Anbar and Mosul. It was planned that the "cadets" would be trained in Belarus from October 2001 until September 30, 2003.

Minsk is clearly aware that this is not the best time for this "peaceful" cooperation in the "sphere of education." The Belarusian Defense Ministry did its best to keep quiet about the contract. Representatives of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Military Academy told Belarusskaya Delovaya Gazeta that they knew nothing about the training, but the Iraqi embassy in Minsk confirmed the information. The Iraqi officers will be restricted to barracks, at least at first. The authorities are even considering confiscating their Iraqi passports for the time being and issuing provisional IDs. This way the Iraqis will not have to undergo the procedure of registration, mandatory for all foreigners.

According to Belarusskaya Delovaya Gazeta, a similar contract with Libya is now being considered. There are also rumors that Belarus recently sold an S-300 system to a Middle East country for $42 million. All negotiations were conducted via the Belmetalenergo company, established several years ago for dealing with Iraq. (Belarusskaya Delovaya Gazeta/ Vremya Novostei, October 5)

LITHUANIA TIGHTENS BORDER WITH BELARUS

Lithuania reinforced protection of its eastern border with Belarus in the wake of the recent increase in flows of illegal immigrants and the United States military campaign in Afghanistan, border officials reported. Out of the 99 illegal migrants detained on Lithuanian borders this year, 53 are citizens of Afghanistan. Two large groups of immigrants from Afghanistan -- a total of 41 persons -- were detained by Lithuanian border guards in September. According to unofficial information available to Lithuanian border officials, approximately 130,000 Afghan citizens are gathered in Moscow at the moment, with a primary goal to make their way to West European countries. The Lithuanian border service believes that the leaders of illegal immigrants are likely to choose routes via Lithuania to Western Europe. (Baltic News Service, October 8)

U.S. NOTES DEVELOPMENT OF CIVIL SOCIETY IN BELARUS

While the recent presidential election in Belarus did not meet international standards for free and fair elections, the United States notes a positive development - "the embryonic emergence of a
pluralist civil society," U.S. Ambassador to the OSCE David T. Johnson told the OSCE
Permanent Council in Vienna on October 4. Following is a transcript of his remarks:

"I would like to thank Ambassador Wieck not just for his report today, but for all his work over the last several years, and particularly over the last year, which demonstrated true courage."

"The report that has been produced by the European institutions is quite clear and there is no getting around the fact that the presidential election in Belarus did not meet OSCE commitments."

"We have already spoken to that question at some length and I do not want to revisit all of the points on it today. But I would like to focus very clearly on the positive development that was noted in the September 10 report -- and that is the embryonic emergence of a pluralist civil society."

"On what was indeed an unprecedented scale, NGOs, youth groups, and independent journalists have emerged and are actively engaged in the civic life of Belarus."

"The Advisory and Monitoring Group (AMG), under Ambassador Wieck's leadership, has made a significant contribution to this development, in large measure through its role in coordinating the domestic election observation effort. We consider this program a cornerstone for building democracy from the ground up."

"Belarus has frequently expressed its desire for greater cooperation with the Advisory and Monitoring Group. We would urge Belarus to seize the moment to demonstrate its readiness to cooperate by working with the AMG to enhance its support for the emergence of a vibrant civil
society."

"We hope in the future the AMG and OSCE institutions will be in a position to report that the Belarusian Government has now joined its efforts to foster the development of this important segment of its society."

"Mr. Chairman, I have sought today to give a positive response to Mr. Wieck's report, but there is one issue here that cannot go unmentioned -- and that is the disappeared. I would ask my Belarusian colleague while he reports what is indeed a positive assessment and a positive opportunity for his government, also to underscore our continued interest in this issue as well." http://usinfo.state.gov/

OPPOSITION LEADERS DENOUNCE POLITICAL PERSECUTION

On October 6, the Belarusian opposition leaders issued a statement saying that in spite of Alexander Lukashenko's reassurances to liberalize and democratize society, the political climate in the country continues to deteriorate. "Criminal proceedings have been instituted against activists of a number of democratic parties and organizations, dozens of participants in the presidential election campaign have been dismissed from their work or expelled from educational institutions, hundreds have been subjected to psychological pressure and intimidation; heavy pressure has been exerted on the independent press," the opposition leaders said in the statement. "If the persecution is not stopped immediately, public activity will be paralyzed in many regions for several years to come." The appeal was signed by Anatoly Lebedko, chair of the United Civic Party; Vintsuk Vyachorka, leader of the BPF Adradzhenne; Nikolai Statkevich, chair of the Belarusian Social Democratic Party (BSDP), or Narodnaya Hramada, Stanislav Shushkevich, leader of the Belarusian Social Democratic Hramada; Sergei Kalyakin, leader of the Party of Communists of Belarus; Nadezhda Polevikova, chair of Nadzeya, Belarusian Women's Party; Ales Belyatski, head of the Viasna Human Rights Center; and Tatiana Protska, head of the Belarusian Helsinki Committee. (Belapan, October 6)

LUKASHENKO ACCUSES RUSSIA, U.S. OF HELPING WANTED SUSPECTS

On October 10, Alexander Lukashenko accused Russia and the United States of helping people who are wanted by the Belarusian law enforcement agencies to escape abroad. "Gennady Uglyanitsa and Andrei Zhernosek fled the country with the help of Americans and with some assistance from Russia," Lukashenko said to his hand-picket parliament. "They initially went into hiding in Moscow and were protected by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, then they were transferred to Bishkek," Lukashenko said. "One of them was then moved to either Norway, Austria, or to the United States," he added. The same day, Leonid Erin, Belarusian KGB chief, said his agency wants both Uglyanitsa and Zhernosek for questioning.

[On a videotape sent on August 27, 2001, to most media outlets in Minsk, Gennady Uglyanitsa, an officer of the Department for Constitutional System Protection and Terrorism Prevention of the KGB Office for Minsk and the Minsk Region, and Andrei Zhernosek, a former member of the Malady Front, opposition youth organization, and an activist of Krai, a small Belarusian nationalist group, said that while they were independently investigating the disappearances of opposition leader Victor Gonchar and his associate Anatoly Krasovsky, they determined that a group of five government-sponsored agents of a special Interior Ministry troops brigade abducted them as they were leaving a sauna in September 1999, shot them in a forest and buried the bodies in the Jeep Cherokee in a sand-covered pit outside the brigade's base in the town of Begoml. The two men said they were willing to testify about what they had seen, but only if some international body or a government could guarantee their safety. Alexander Lukashenko and his top aides mounted an aggressive campaign to deny allegations that a government-sponsored death squad had murdered the opposition politicians.-Ed.]. (Interfax, October 10)

BAJ DEMANDS OPEN TRIAL OF JOURNALIST'S ABDUCTORS

On October 10, the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ) petitioned the Minsk Region Court, which on October 23 will start hearing the case of Valery Ignatovich and Maksim Malik, both former officers of the Almaz 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, to allow its representative to be present at the courtroom. The court said the trial would be closed for the public, but the BAJ is concerned that if the hearing is closed, the public would be deprived of the right to know the truth about the journalist's fate. (Radio Racija, October 11)

LIST OF THE REGIME'S LATEST VICTIMS

Viasna Human Rights Center prepared the following list of recent victims of political persecution in Belarus following the presidential elections:

Andrei Alekhnovich -dismissed from his position as school teacher in the town of Kroupki, Minsk Region.

Vasil Androsyuk from Brest - faces criminal investigation for slandering the president under Art 368, par. 1, of the Belarusian Penal Code, which is punishable by up to five year's imprisonment.

Anatoly Askerka, activist from Borisov, Minsk Region, - fined 150 minimal wages (about $750) for "participation in mass actions that violated public order" under Art. 167, par. 1, of the Administrative Offenses Code.

Natalya Brel, activist of the United Civic Party from Rechitsa, Gomel Region, - charged with slandering the president under Art 368, par. 1, of the Belarusian Penal Code, which is punishable by up to five year's imprisonment. She spent three days under arrest and was forced to sign a pledge not to flee.

Timofei Dranchuk from Minsk -expelled from the Department of Journalism of the Belarusian State University.

Vladimir Dimidriadi, an activist from the town of Belinichi, Mogilev region, - fired from the position of district architect for active participation in the independent elections observation.

Polina Gromova, an activist from Baranovichi, Brest Region, - unlawfully detained and held overnight in detention.

Victor Ivanov from Minsk - unlawfully detained.

Yury Karetnikov from Minsk -beaten by the police.

Maksim Kedrik from Minsk - beaten by the police.

Vasily Klochkov, an activist from Minsk, - fined BYB15,000 (~$10) for election campaigning.

Vladimir Krivoi from Minsk - beaten by the police.

Vladimir Kosmovski, an activist from Osipovichy, Mogilev Region, - fined for "participation in mass actions that violated public order" under Art. 167, par. 3, of the Administrative Offenses Code.

Anatoly Loban, an activist from Soligorsk, Minsk Region, - fined 150 minimal wages (~$750) for "participation in mass actions that violated public order" under Art. 167, par. 1.

Sergei Malchik from Grodno - faces criminal investigation for "calls to violate of the constitutional order" under Art. 361 of the Belarusian Penal Code.

Dmitry Mankevich, an activist from the town of Karelichi, Grodno Region, - fined BYB75,000 (~$50) for acting as independent observer during the presidential elections.

Kazimir Misura, an activist from town of Voronovo, Grodno Region, - fined BYB50,000 (~$35) for active participation in the independent observation of the elections.

Petr Migurski, an activist from the village of Dobreika, Mogilev Region, - faces criminal investigation on charges of violating the election legislation under Art. 192 of the Belarusian Penal Code.

Nikolai Motorenko, an activist from Krichev, Mogilev Region and journalist of Volny Gorod (Free City), an independent newspaper, - charged under Article 183 of the Criminal Code (organization of public disturbance).

Kiril Nerimov, a minor from Minsk, - fined BYB15,000 (~$10) for election campaigning.

Sergei Nerovny, an activist from Krichev, Mogilev Region and journalist of Volny Gorod (Free City), an independent newspaper, - charged under Article 183 of the Criminal Code (organization of public disturbance).

Alexander Nikitin - fired from his teaching position at the Smilovichi, Minsk Region, Agricultural Academy.

Vitaly Nikitin -reprimanded for "anti-state propaganda and slander of the president of the Republic of Belarus" by the administration of the Smilovichi, Minsk Region, Agricultural Academy, where he works.

Vitaly Padalaika, an activist from village of Zelenoe, Minsk Region, - lost his job at the Minsk Engine Plant due to his political activities.

Paulina Panasuk, an activist of the Brest branch of Viasna Human Rights Center, - sentenced to five days' imprisonment under Art 167, par. 1 (organization and participation in mass actions which violated public order), and was fined for "contempt of court".

Gennady Radetski, an activist from town of Svisloch, Grodno Region, - stood trial on charges of "petty hooliganism" under Art. 156 of the Belarusian Administrative Code, for participation in the independent observation of the presidential elections.

Denis Shishenkov from Minsk - fined 150 minimal wages for "participation in mass actions that violated public order" under Art. 167, par. 1.

Pavel Sivokonev from Minsk - was fined 150 minimal wages (~$750) for "participation in mass actions that violated public order" under Art. 167, par. 1.

Tatiana Smola from town of Shuchin, Grodno Region, - threatened to be fired for active participation in the independent election observation.

Vadim Stefanenko, an activist from Krichev, Mogilev Region and journalist of Volny Gorod (Free City), an independent newspaper, - charged under Article 183 of the Criminal Code (organization of public disturbance).

Anatoly Strulchinski, an activist from Slonim, Brest Region, - beaten, suffering broken arm, now unable to find any job to support himself.

Nikolai Sukhoi from Minsk - fined 150 minimal wages (~$750) for "participation in mass actions that violated public order" under Art. 167, par. 1.

Yury Suslov from Minsk - fined 150 minimal wages (~$750) for "participation in mass actions that violated public order" under Art. 167, par. 1.

Yegor Varvashevich from Brest -charged with violation of Art 167 par. 1 (organization and participation in mass actions which violated public order) and Art 166 (disobedience to the police) of the Administrative Offenses Code.

Vasily Zhakov, an activist from Pinsk, Brest Region, - expelled from the Belarusian State Technology University. (Viasna Human Rights Center, October 11)

ACTIVISTS STAND TRIAL FOR PROTESTING AGAINST POLITICAL KILLINGS

On October 8, Judge Aleksey Bolotov of the Borisov City Court issued warnings to Dmitry Vishnevsky and Ekaterina Dedko on charges of violating Art. 167, par. 1, of the Administrative Offenses Code (participation in mass actions that violate public order) for taking part in an unauthorized picket "We Want to Know the Truth" in August, 2001, dedicated to the political disappearances in the country. Anatoly Askerka, another protester was fined 150 minimal wages (about $750). (Viasna Human Rights Center, October 9)

RENEWAL OF BELARUS' SPECIAL GUEST STATUS IN COE POSTPONED

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has decide to postpone the consideration of the issue whether to renew special guest status to Belarus for another couple of months. The Council once again expressed profound concerns that Belarus continues to fall short of its standards with respect to free and fair election, rule of law, and human rights. (Radio Racija, October 11)

REPRESSION AGAINST TRADE UNIONISTS ON THE INCREASE

On October 9, in its annual survey of union rights violations, the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) said that in 2000 trade unionists paid a heavy price for their commitment. "Trade unionists are regularly the target of attacks not only by paramilitaries and guerillas, but also by the authorities and employers," the report said. Worldwide, the ICFTU said 209 trade unionists killed or "disappeared," 50 percent more than last year's figure, about 8,500 arrested, 3,000 more injured, over 100,000 harassed and nearly 20,000 dismissed from their jobs because of their trade union activities. Colombia is the world's most dangerous place for organized labor, accounting for almost three-quarters of disappearances and killings. Along with Colombia, the report highlighted Guatemala, Venezuela, Costa Rica, China, South Korea, Swaziland, Zimbabwe, Belarus and Gulf states such as Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates as having "the most disturbing" union rights record. "In Belarus, the trade union movement had to fend off numerous attacks by the presidential administration which impounded union bank accounts on several occasions and tried to bring dissident national centers under its control," said the report. (Canada NewsWire via COMTEX, October 9)

-AT HOME IN BELARUS-

NEW PM CONFIRMED

On October 10, the Belarusian parliament confirmed Gennady Novitsky as the country's new prime minister. Alexander Lukashenko used the occasion to joke about accusations that he is a dictator. "It is the president who decides which is the best route to take ... on his own the prime minister cannot make any decisions. There are already enough dictators in this country. Something, besides, which people accuse me of being," Lukashenko said. (Belapan, October 10)

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We regret that our partners website, Charter 97, www.charter97.org with news in Belarusian, Russian, and English, has temporarily suspended news updates but back archives are still available.

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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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