REPORT ON THE DEPUTIES OF THE 13th SUPREME SOVIET OF BELARUS

PREPARED BY CHARTER 97
WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF THE INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Updated in January 2001

VIOLATIONS OF THE RIGHTS OF LAWFULLY-ELECTED PARLIAMENTARIANS IN BELARUS

At the present time, of the three branches of government in the Republic of Belarus, none of them remain legitimized. Balance and equality among the branches of government were completely destroyed during the 1996 referendum initiated by President Lukashenko. The President raised for public discussion "amendments" to the fundamental law of the country, which reduced the system of checks and balances virtually to nil. The current official legislative body of the Republic of Belarus cannot be recognized as legitimate since it was not formed through open and fair elections, but through direct appointment of the deputies by the chief of the executive branch (the President). The same is true for the judicial bodies. It should also be noted that under the 1994 Constitution, President Lukashenko's legitimacy expired on July 20 1999. Thus, there is no longer a single branch of government in Belarus which exercises its powers on a legitimate basis.

BACKGROUND SUMMARY:

THE DESTRUCTION OF AN ELECTED LEGISLATURE

On March 15, 1994, the Supreme Soviet of the Republic of Belarus (the elected parliament) adopted a new Constitution which was hailed as proof that Belarus valued democracy and respect for human rights.
Throughout 1995, the Constitutional Court made rulings pronouncing various presidential decrees unconstitutional. These were largely ignored by President Lukashenko. In July 1996, the Supreme Soviet refused President Lukashenko's demands to extend his term and limit the powers of the Constitutional Court by creating a second legislative chamber to be chosen by the president.

The 13th Supreme Soviet had 198 elected deputies (the capacity was 260 seats, but in 62 districts, elections were invalidated due to low turnout). Under its rules of procedure, to start an impeachment motion, 70 signatures were required to petition the Constitutional Court, and then a two-thirds majority vote of the Supreme Soviet would be required for an impeachment to succeed. In November 1996, fearing an impeachment campaign, President Lukashenko decided to confront the powers of the Supreme Soviet and the Constitutional Court, and held a "National Referendum" on amending the Constitution to broaden the powers of the executive. International human rights monitors objected that popular referenda should deal with more specific local questions, and not address the constitution itself or the separation of powers. Shortly before the referendum was to be held in November 1996, the Constitutional Court ruled that the plebiscite's results could have the status of a recommendation, but could not be binding.

The referendum results, widely believed to be manipulated by agitators who influenced voters under the guise of ensuring voter comprehension and participation, ultimately produced a large majority of votes in favor of the president's proposals to amend the 1994 Constitution. A group of deputies then filed an impeachment petition with the Constitutional Court, but some were forced by government pressure to withdraw their signatures of consent, leaving the petition without the sufficient number of votes to be considered. The 13th Supreme Soviet was then dissolved and the new Constitution, which authorized the president to handpick the lower chamber of the National Assembly (the new parliament), was adopted. A group of 13th Supreme Soviet deputies formed a commission to examine the allegations of Lukashenko's unconstitutional acts, but began to suffer reprisals.

The European Union and the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly have not recognized this non-elected body, but rather continue to recognize the disbanded 13th Supreme Soviet.
Unable to enforce its rulings on the president's unconstitutional acts, and without the sufficient number of signatures under law to consider the parliamentary impeachment appeal, the Constitutional Court was made subservient to the executive, thereby destroying the system of checks and balances and concentrating executive and legislative power in the hands of Lukashenko.

Originally, in the 13th Supreme Soviet, only 70 deputies were pro-Lukashenko. After the elected parliament was shut down, a total of 140 members applied for seats in the new National Assembly to be approved by the president. Of these, 110 were granted seats. The rest, some 90 deputies, were blacklisted (that is, there were 58 who did not apply for seats, and some 30 were not granted the slots because they were suspected of disloyalty. There is no official, public order about their status, but there are numerous reports that they are routinely denied employment and are under surveillance. One deputy committed suicide. Another agreed to serve as an ambassador to a foreign country; still others were persuaded to mute their criticism of President

Lukashenko through various threats or acts of harassment.
Those who have resisted the pressure have come under constant government attack, suffered the intimidation of their family members, and have been subject to detentions, beatings, and imprisonment on fabricated criminal charges.

1996 REFERENDUM: A VIRTUAL COUP D'ETAT

The referendum served as an instrument of forceful installation of an illegitimate system of government in Belarus. From the legal perspective, it can be characterized as a coup d'etat, a virtual seizure of power.
Initiated by President Lukashenko, the 1996 referendum was prepared and conducted by violating numerous legislative and procedural norms.

Thus, for example, under the 1994 Constitution and the Law on the Popular Plebiscite (Referendum) in the Republic of Belarus only amendments and additions to the fundamental law could be put to a referendum, not a new version of the Constitution, which was basically the draft proposed by President Lukashenko.
Moreover, under the law, the results of the popular vote should not be binding, but merely a form of recommendation, that is, for the vote to be recognized as legitimate, it was necessary to obtain the approval of these results by a two-thirds majority of the lawfully-elected Supreme Soviet.

All of these laws, and many others, were violated. Without having the right to do so under the existing fundamental law, President Lukashenko issued decrees that made binding the decisions taken in the so-called referendum. Without authorization, on November 14, 1996, President Lukashenko relieved Victor Gonchar, the chair of the Central Electoral Commission, from his post. In fact, the appointment or dismissal of such officials, under the 1994 Constitution was exclusively the prerogative of the Supreme Soviet. When Gonchar tried to continue to fulfill his duties, Lukashenko sent his presidential security agents to prevent him from entering the building. The chief reason for dismissing Gonchar from his post was his refusal to accept the results of the unlawful preliminary vote, and also his active campaign against the procedural violations during the preparation of the referendum and the voting.

There was yet another gross violation of procedure regarding the functioning of the Central Electoral Commission. The results of the vote should have been confirmed by a two-thirds majority of the members of the Commission. However, when the votes were tallied, only 10 of the 18 members of the Commission consented to sign the statement, that is, 55 percent. The executive branch simply ignored this fact.
The mass media, monopolized by the executive branch, became virtually inaccessible for representatives of the opposition and expressed exclusively the opinion of the presidential vertikal, or vertical line of authority. According to the European Institute of Mass Media, more than 92 percent of air time on national television and radio allocated for coverage of the referendum issues was devoted to coverage of the president's position, 8 percent was given for neutral information, and the opposition did not receive a single minute of air time.

An example of how the government ignored both legislation and the fundamental law was the fact that the voting on the six questions in the referendum began several weeks before the date appointed by the Supreme Soviet. Citizens were forced to make compulsory appearances at their voting districts before November 24, the official date of the referendum, that is, during a period when independent observers could not monitor the voting process.

A gross violation of procedure for the referendum occurred in that the sealing of the voting ballots was not monitored by the Central Electoral Commission which gave the executive branch wide latitude for falsification of the results of the vote. After the voting was finished, independent observers filed more than 600 reports about violations of procedure with the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Belarus. Moreover, the referendum was conducted through the financial assistance of executive agencies, primarily from unofficial sources, bypassing electoral commissions at all levels. President Lukashenko opened a bank account to which all enterprises and organizations were supposed to transfer funds for the referendum. Access to the account was open only to the presidential vertikal and administration; meanwhile the district electoral commissions, whose immediate obligation was to finance the voting procedures, did not have access to the necessary funds.

THE BEGINNING OF THE PROCEDURE FOR IMPEACHMENT OF THE PRESIDENT AND THE DISBANDING OF THE LEGITIMATE PARLIAMENT

As a result of the President's numerous violations of the Constitution and other normative and legislative acts of the Republic of Belarus, the parliament passed a resolution on the need to remove the head of state from power, for not abiding by the Constitution, upon which he had sworn his oath upon entering office. In order to initiate the process of impeachment and begin the review of the violations of the Constitution and laws of the country by the head of state, it was necessary to gather no less than 70 votes by the deputies of the 13th Supreme Soviet. An appeal signed by 82 deputies of parliament was initially sent to the Constitutional Court. However, by the next day, many of those who had signed this document withdrew their signatures, despite the face that a procedure for withdrawal had not been specified either by the Constitution or by a regulation of the legislature. The reason for the withdrawal was due to the executive branch's use of threats, bribes, and deceit to persuade deputies to take back their signatures.

Thus, Mecheslav Hirut, a member of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, reported that shortly before the review of the "impeachment case," some of the vice premiers, ministers, and chairs of district and regional sub-committees literally hunted down deputies of the Supreme Soviet, and using blackmail, threats, and promises of jobs demanded that they withdraw their signatures from the impeachment appeal to the Constitutional Court. Deputy Andrei Klimov stated that through a third party he was offered the post of Minister of Construction by the executive branch in exchange for removing his signature from the appeal to the Constitutional Court about the initiation of impeachment proceedings regarding the President of Belarus.
Deputy Valery Shchukin reported pressure from the executive branch on the population of the town of Polotsk in the last days before the referendum. Thus, on the morning of November 21, calls were broadcast to the population over the radio to turn out to their voting districts and support the President. Deputy Pavel Daneyko reported that before the referendum, heads of universities actively agitated students to vote from November 21-22, that is, before the beginning of the official vote. Victor Gonchar provided deputies with analogous information, reporting that nuns visited many Minsk hospitals to agitate the patients to take part in the referendum and vote for the president's version of the Constitution.

As a result of the conflict between the executive and the legislative branches of government, the internal political situation in the country rose to a boiling point. In this high-tension situation both sides found that a mediator was necessary. In accordance with the law, such a mediator would have to be the Constitutional Court, however the latter had already found the President's orders and decrees to be unconstitutional eight times and thus was unacceptable from the point of view of the executive branch. Some Russian politicians offered their services, including Prime Minister Victor Chernomyrdin, speaker of the Federation Council Yegor Stroev, and Gennady Seleznev, speaker of the State Duma.

In the course of their talks with President Lukashenko, Semyon Sharetski, speaker of the Supreme Soviet, and Valery Tikhinya, chair of the Supreme Court, reached an agreement according to which the Supreme Soviet would recall the impeachment order if the President would in return announce that the referendum results were unbinding and strictly consultative. In addition, it was decided that a constitutional congress would be held in which representatives of the executive and the legislative bodies would take part on equal terms. This congress was to establish a new version of the fundamental law based on the results of the referendum. The President and the representatives of parliament gave their word not to take any steps in the meantime towards distancing each other from power.

The given agreement, which might have become the first step on the path to a resolution of this internal conflict, was for all practical purposes violated by the president. The very next day after the agreement was signed Lukashenko spoke at the parliament announcing that "as head of state I will do everything within my power so that the will of the people expressed at this referendum will be binding for all branches of the government." At the same time, having refused his responsibilities under the agreement, the President demanded the Supreme Soviet's complete adherence to the agreement. In addition, the pro-president faction in the parliament made the ratification of the signed agreement impossible. In this manner, once again the executive branch of the government and the president's supporters in parliament disrupted attempts at a peaceful resolution of the conflict. It became evident from this time on that the president would not compromise. As a result, almost all the president's goals were achieved with the help of the power structure and the army.

As a result of the many falsifications and violations of procedures during the preparation and execution of the referendum, the executive branch was able to create a semblance of national support for the new version of the Constitution prepared by the President's administration. Immediately after the vote-count was taken the government began the process of liquidating the legitimate parliament and creating a new legislative body. In accordance with the new version of the fundamental law, its make-up was to be determined by the president, which constituted a gross violation of the principle of the separation and balance of powers. Deputies of the 13th Supreme Soviet in opposition to the president were not invited to join the new legislative body.

Moreover, although the presidential version of the Constitution granted the deputies the maintaining of their deputies' powers, this condition was not met. In a few days' time the opposition parliamentarians were denied entrance to the Supreme Soviet. In addition, according to Victor Homich, a deputy and the chair of a parliamentary commission, the President ordered that those Supreme Soviet deputies who had refused to state in writing their desire to work in the new parliament, the so-called National Assembly, were not to be accepted.

Those elected to the 13th Supreme Soviet during additional voting held simultaneously with the referendum found themselves in an even more difficult situation. Four deputies, Gennady Grushevoi, Vladimir Tarasov, Alexander Protsevich and Yuri Trotsky, elected in accordance with constitutional and procedural norms, have to this day not been approved by the presidential Central Electoral Committee.

The formation of the so-called National Assembly was completed literally the day after the referendum. It was composed of only those deputies who supported the politics of President Lukashenko. Of the 123 parliamentarians who announced their resignation from the legitimately elected Supreme Soviet, the 110 "most loyal" were given places in the Assembly as planned for in the presidential Constitution. As a result, the lower house of this stocked parliament was composed almost completely of representatives pro-president faction (58 persons), as well as the most acceptable agrarian and communist faction representatives. Representatives of the opposition parties were not to be found on the list of the 123 invited to take part in the session of the so-called National Assembly. Only 17 of those deputies who left the Supreme Soviet were not part of any faction. Seeing that the acceptance to the presidential parliament was based on loyalty to the executive branch, the deputies now presiding in parliament represent only 40 percent of the Belarusian electorate. According to the Constitution and the law on elections, the territory of the Republic is divided into 260 electoral regions each of which elects one representative to the Legislative body. Thus, 110 deputies represent less than half of the country's electorate, less than 3 of the 7 million with the right to vote. Minsk, in which 36 percent of the voting population resides, is represented in the National Assembly by only three deputies, constituting only 3 percent of the congress. It is worth noting that Minsk is the most opposition-oriented city in the Republic and thus the deputies it elected cannot be accepted as representatives in the presidential parliament.

The self-proclaimed National Assembly was instated by the president in violation of the Constitution and began work immediately. First, it passed a law on the disbanding of the Supreme Soviet and the cessation of its activities. This constituted a gross violation of the rules of procedure of the legitimate parliament, which states that the disbanding of the parliament can only take place upon its own decision in agreement with a professional majority of deputies. In addition, in its first days of operation the presidentially-created parliament recalled the impeachment order from the Constitutional Court despite the fact that it contained almost none of those parliamentarians whose signatures were on the court appeal.

THE VIOLATION OF THE RIGHTS OF DEPUTIES OF THE 13th SUPREME SOVIET NOT ENTERED INTO THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY

Having achieved the disruption in the balance of power it needed, the executive government did not trouble itself with acting in accordance with its own illegitimately accepted version of the Constitution. For instance, the presidential version of the fundamental law states that the powers of deputies not admitted to the National Assembly remain in tact until the end of the term to which they were elected. However, in May 1997, the National Assembly decided to deny those parliamentarians who had not expressed their desire to work in the presidential parliament of their deputy status. This constituted a violation of both the 1994 Constitution and the 1997 version of the fundamental law under.

Moreover, the rights of deputies remaining loyal to the 1994 Constitution were violated even before the National Assembly, upon the President's initiative, passed the Law "On the Status of Deputies of the 13th Supreme Soviet." From the time of the referendum the deputies in the president's opposition had practically lost the right to hold meetings with their electorate. The executive branch did everything it could to stop the deputies of the Supreme Soviet from informing their electorate about the truth of what was happening in Belarus.

Thus, for instance, just a month after the referendum, an attempt was made to interrogate deputies Gennady Karpenko and Stanislav Shushkevich and to bring charges against them in connection with the organization of a meeting with voters held on December 8, 1996. In February and March 1997 the deputies Stanislav Bogdankevich and Gennady Karpenko, representatives of the United Civil Party, were denied the right to meet with the electorate in the cities of Pruzhany and Petrikov. V. Radivonchik, the regional head of the United Civil Party in Pruzhany, announced that he and his relatives were threatened with "seriously unpleasant" events if the meeting between Gennady Karpenko and the local voters from the city took place.
Practically speaking, members of the Supreme Soviet and the deputies who refused to co-operate with an executive government that violated the fundamental law found themselves unable to continue their deputies' activities openly. They were denied access to the Oval Hall in the House of Government, where meetings of the Supreme Soviet were to take place according to the parliament's rules of procedure. In addition they had no opportunity to rent an office space that would provide normal working conditions. The parliamentarians appealed to the court several times asking for the reinstatement of their status and opportunity to pursue their activities. Each time they were refused. In this manner, the only legitimate legislative body in the country was forced to operate as an underground organization.

Even so, this underground Supreme Soviet has been the object of constant attacks from the executive branch of the government. The presidential vertikal and special services apply as much pressure as they can to force the deputies to cease their activities. All possible means are used: intimidation, provocation, libel and the use of force.

In February 1997, Anatoly Lebedko, vice-chair of the Supreme Soviet's Commission on International Affairs, was brutally beaten in the entranceway to his own home. At about 8:00 p.m. on February 10, 1998, Victor Gonchar drove Lebedko home. Lebedko walked into his building and took the elevator up to his floor. Two young strangers immediately attacked with a blow to the face. Without saying a word they continued to kick him after he fell to the floor.

That March, well-wishers notified Gennady Karpenko that the Belarusian special service was planing to have him beaten up at a demonstration scheduled for March 15. Thanks to this information, a potential provocation was deterred.

In February of that year deputy Vladimir Koudinov, director of the Ivatskevichi Industrial Trade Firm, was charged with offering bribes to the highway police. Vladimir Koudinov was escorting a truck transporting food. The truck was stopped for a check by the highway police. The official version is that during the procedure Koudinov offered a US$500 bribe to the commanding officer at the station. Koudinov was sentenced to 7 years in prison and confiscation of his property. Attorneys claim that political motives are obviously present in the case, particularly seeing how biased the judges were against the defendant in their inspection of the case. Moreover, at the time the verdict was being sought, the judges held a meeting with the prosecutor, an action that is forbidden in accordance with the acting legislature.

Mecheslav Gryb, the former chair of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet has been practically denied the right to work, a right which was added to the first section of the new Constitution. The Ministry of Justice refused to grant him a license to practice law in spite of the fact that the qualifications commission of that same ministry recognized his knowledge as satisfactory for practice. Gryb's complaint to a Minsk court was declined.

In February 1998, Andrei Klimov, a deputy of the 13th Supreme Soviet and a businessman, was arrested. He has been charged with the violation of the law on business activity - the building of a residential building without a license. This is a dubious charge, considering that the controlling bodies did not have any objections during the entire time when Klimov's construction firm was putting up a building in the center of the city. The sudden "enlightenment" in the prosecutor's office can only be considered to be politically motivated. Klimov has been in a pre-trial detention center throughout the investigation. He faces a sentence of up to 10 years imprisonment.

RESTRICTIONS ON THE OPEN EXPRESSION OF OPINION

Since 1996, the deputies' only means of fighting for their rights and for the rights of the voters have been public meetings and demonstrations. Representatives of the government periodically deny Supreme Soviet deputies and their electorate the opportunity to organize protest actions without any reasonable basis. Presidential Decree No. 5 of March 5, 1997 "On meetings, marches, demonstrations, rallies and pickets in the Republic of the USSR" was passed in order to more effectively obstruct such demonstrations. In accordance with this decree, protest actions are forbidden almost everywhere in the center of the city as well as near government buildings. Violations of the decree are punished with warnings, high fines and administrative detentions. Based on a report of the President's Security Council, in the first three months after Presidential Decree No. 5, the authorities had detained 367 people and Minsk courts had raised over 300 cases and 121 people had been placed under administrative arrest with 120 fines totaling 410 million rubles (which at the time was worth about US$15,000.)

The most widespread means used to put pressure on the deputies are arrests, detainment and fines for involvement in demonstrations and protest meetings. Deputies are detained even in those cases when the demonstration itself is sanctioned by the government. In the many court cases brought against the deputies, the same charge, the organization of mass disturbances, is continually brought time and again against the defendants. Almost all of those deputies who refused to co-operate with the regime have more than once been honored by the government's attention. Semyon Sharetski, Gennady Karpenko, Stanislav Shushkevich, Anatoly Lebedko, Victor Gonchar, Mecheslav Grib, and many others have been called to court or have been fined in absentia, which also constitutes a violation of the law. Valery Shchukin is in the lead in this respect among the deputies of the Supreme Soviet. During almost every demonstration the police have used force against Shchukin, and detentions and arrests with or without reason have become the usual fare for him. Over the three years since the Supreme Soviet was disbanded, Shchukin has been sentenced to short prison terms more than 13 times and the sum of his fines totals well over 80 million rubles (about US$1,500), an incredibly large sum for a Belarusian citizen.

Other representatives of the opposition deputies' camp have increasingly often faced persecution. For example, during a youth demonstration, Boris Gunter (of the 12th Supreme Soviet) and Anatoly Lebedko were detained and fined. The next day, representatives of the opposition marched on the third anniversary of the signing of the 1994 Constitution. During the course of the procession no conflicts arose between members of the procession and police. At the head of the column were the chairs of the 12th and 13th Supreme Soviets, Mecheslav Gryb and Semyon Sharetski, along with Presidium members Gennady Karpenko and Vasily Novikov, and deputies Alexander Dobrovolsky, Vasily Shlyndikov, Ludmila Gryaznova, Olga Abramova, Semyon Domash, and Pavel Daneiko. Almost all of them spoke at the meeting after the procession. Sanctions against those involved began after the march was over. On the following day, police officers visited Sharetski and demanded that he sign a statement declaring that "Citizen S. G. Sharetski had violated the city order that forbade the march." Sharetsky refused to sign the statement, saying that the city government's decision was "provocational."

Vasily Novikov, vice-chair of the Supreme Soviet, was detained one evening shortly thereafter by two police officers - a major and a captain - during a demonstration in Gorky Park organized by the Minsk chapter of the Belarusian Communist Party. He was asked to proceed to the police station. During their conversation Novikov, who at the time had been involved in the organization of the celebration of third anniversary of the 1994 Constitution, informed the officers that he had previously spoken with General Terletsky and Colonel Solonts of the Minsk police and that he would not sign any statements before speaking with them.
Law enforcement officers first came to Gennady Karpenko's apartment on the day of the procession, March 15, 1997 at 10:10 p.m. with the apparent intention of writing a police report. Karpenko informed them that, according to the law, a citizen has the right not to let anyone into his apartment and refused further conversation. The next day, the police returned with several police cars and dogs. However, Karpenko was not home at that time. The next day, he scheduled a house-call with his doctor, who diagnosed him with a hypertonic crisis. The police entered his apartment at the same time as the doctor and demanded that Karpenko sign a police report which stated that he had violated Presidential Decree No. 5. Their conversation was interrupted by the ambulance crew which left after taking a cardiogram.

Valery Shchukin, deputy of the Supreme Soviet, was detained two days after the opposition march. According to Shchukin, he was being followed and monitored constantly. However, he claimed to have used his "revolutionary experience and fooled his pursuers several times." After that, the police visited the apartments of his son and sister in an attempt to arrest him.

Stanislav Bogdankevich was not only asked to admit his guilt for his involvement in the unsanctioned demonstration but also to hand over firearms, which he did not own. On this occasion Bogdankevich, chair of the United Civic Party, commented that he was an exceptionally peaceful person and does not "even own a fishing pole or a butterfly net, to say nothing of a rifle."

Police were sent to the apartment of Mecheslav Gryb, but were forced to wait 24 hours as he had gone to see his relatives for the weekend. Upon returning home, Gryb was presented with a police report on which he wrote that he did not agree with the charges launched against him. Gryb stood trial on April 1, 1997 and was fined 20 million rubles (U.S. $850) for the violation of Presidential Decree No. 5.

During a demonstration held in honor of the 79th anniversary of the Belarusian National Republic, March 24, 1997, nearly 100 people were beaten or detained by the police. Among them was Gennady Karpenko. He was hit several times with a billy club on the head and back, and then detained. At the police station, the emergency care group found that the deputy was undergoing a hypertonic crisis. In spite of his condition, the police refused to grant Karpenko permission to return home right away.

On June 23, 1997 Alexander Dobrovolsky (also a member of the organizational committee of Charter 97), Pavel Znavets, Anatoly Lebedko, and Stanislav Bogdankevich took part in a protest demonstration against human rights violations. The four deputies walked from the pre-trial detention center to the Ministry for Internal Affairs building and the Republic Prosecutor's Office carrying signs demanding the freedom of their colleagues Vladimir Koudinov and Andrei Klimov as well as Alexei Shydlovski, a member of the Youth Front, who had all been imprisoned for political reasons. Following this demonstration, all of its participants were called to court to stand trial for violating Presidential Decree No. 5.

CASE BY CASE:

PERSECUTION OF 13th SUPREME SOVIET DEPUTIES

SUMMARY

At least twelve deputies of the 13th Supreme Soviet, the legitimate parliament of Belarus, which was disbanded by President Alexander Lukashenko in 1996, have been imprisoned, detained, fined or harassed for their opposition to the president. Two are currently in prison, one has disappeared and many others have been detained, harassed, and forced to pay heavy fines.
All of those who are being intensively harassed by the authorities today signed the deputies' petition to the Constitutional Court in 1996 calling for impeachment of President Lukashenko. Harassment of these Supreme Soviet deputies and the implicit intimidation of their colleagues by example are clearly part of a politically-motivated campaign against the Belarusian opposition, instigated by the President and his administration.

INITIAL ATTEMPT AT PROSECUTION ON POLITICAL CHARGES

In July 1997, the authorities moved to attack the deputies who were participating in the unofficial impeachment commission, which had determined that 156 presidential degrees were either unlawful or violated the constitution. According to Human Rights Watch, the Belarusian prosecutor's office brought criminal charges against Victor Gonchar and all the other commission members under Article 128 (2) of the criminal code--defamation linked with accusations of an especially grave crime -- which carries a maximum sentence of five years of imprisonment. As an unofficial body, the impeachment commission had no legal force, yet Belarusian law enforcement brought criminal charges against all of the commission's members including Gonchar, its leader, and Andrei Klimov.
The investigation failed to produce any incriminating materials, and, although the case remains open, there have since been no arrests or prosecutions of commission members under this article. Meanwhile, authorities have switched their tactics from the use of clearly political articles, to charges based on alleged criminal offenses which human rights monitors say are fabricated.

IMPRISONMENT

ANDREI KLIMOV

Andrei Klimov, a Supreme Soviet deputy, a member of the United Civic Party, and once a businessman, has been held in pre-trial detention since February 11, 1998 on several charges, including a charge that his company constructed buildings without a permit. Klimov's health has deteriorated considerably while in detention. During his time in prison, Klimov has twice held hunger strikes against his unlawful detention, but his declining health forced him to discontinue this practice. His trial, which is closed to the public, began on June 22, 1999 in the Lenin District Court in Minsk. On June 14, 1999, the prosecutor's office filed official charges against Klimov. They include embezzlement (Article 91, Part 4 of the Criminal Code), violation of procedures for doing business (Article 151, Part 2), improper use of credit (Article 150, Part 2) and forgery (Article 171). The embezzlement charge alone carries a possible sentence of 6-15 years imprisonment and property confiscation.

Local human rights organizations believe that the real reason for Klimov's arrest was his active role in initiating the petition for the impeachment of President Lukashenko in November 1996. Klimov was also active in the Supreme Soviet Special Commission on President Lukashenko's constitutional violations, formed in January 1997 after the referendum. Most notably, several days before his arrest on February 11, 1998, Klimov distributed to government officials hundreds of copies of a report documenting President Lukashenko's violations of the Constitution, prepared and with commentary by Victor Gonchar, the chair of the Central Electoral Commission of the Republic of Belarus. Convinced of the political motivations for his hostile treatment, Klimov refuses to admit to the charges and, therefore, refuses to review the case materials or answer the police investigator's question about his alleged infractions.
On October 8, 1999 Judge Vera Tupik turned down the Klimov's request to be released during his trial. The petition was handed over by Klimov's attorney Gary Pogonyailo, deputy chair of the Belarus Helsinki Committee. Pogonyailo reminded the judge about the Belarus's commitments to human rights and international standards of treatment in detention. Commenting on the refusal, Judge Tupik referred to Klimov as a criminal and explained that there were sufficient grounds to keep him in custody.

The prosecutor requested nine years of imprisonment for Klimov's alleged offenses. He was sentenced to six years of prison on March 17, 2000.

Soon after Klimov's arrest, police confiscated a TV and a VCR from his wife's apartment. These appliances were later seen in the office of colonel Kuzhel, who was in charge of the investigation. Since Klimov's arrest, his family was subjected to the following forms of humiliation on the part of the investigation: surveillance, bugging of phones, various provocations. Family members were not allowed to visit Klimov. Seven months after Klimov's arrest, his wife's apartment was sealed and, in two weeks, searched for the second time with confiscation of "Special Commission's Report on President Lukashenko's violations of Belarus Constitution and Laws." The apartment's owner was not even notified of the burglary. During two weeks, family members could not enter their own apartment to take warm clothes, since the investigation had sealed the door. It is important to add that Klimov has a handicapped mother and three young children.

VLADIMIR KOUDINOV

Vladimir Koudinov, a Supreme Soviet deputy, a member of the United Civic Party, and businessman, has been imprisoned since October 1997 on charges of attempted bribery. Koudinov was stopped for a document check by highway police while accompanying his company truck which was transporting eight tons of meat. The police arrested Koudinov for offering them a bribe of US$500 to let the truck pass. Koudinov was tried August 8, 1997 and convicted of bribery and sentenced to 7 years of prison. The trial was attended by representatives of the Belarusian Helsinki Committee who observed many violations of due process and violations of Koudinov's human rights.
Local human rights monitors believe that the real reason for Koudinov's arrest was his involvement in the attempt to impeach President Lukashenko, his failure to remove his signature from the impeachment order, and his activity in the Supreme Soviet which was disbanded by President Lukashenko as a result of the illegitimate referendum of November 1996.
On June 8, 1998, Koudinov's wife was attacked by two unknown men in masks who threatened to beat her if she continued her efforts to free her husband.
In June, 1999, Koudinov's wife sent an inquiry to Belarus' Prosecutor's Office about her husband's company, which had been looted. While Koudinov is in prison, his stockbreeding company's equipment, worth about $300,000, has been stolen. The Prosecutor's Office refused to open criminal proceedings in connection with the crime, and no one has been charged yet.
While in prison, Koudinov has been continuously harassed and mistreated by the wards. On March 1, 2000, he was placed in solitary confinement for seven days for smoking with his fellow-inmates before the morning exercise was over. Traditionally, no one completes the exercise, going instead to a place designated for smoking. This time, however, the guards singled Koudinov out of the crowd of smoking prisoners, and took him to the prison's administrative court.

DISAPPEARANCES/DEATHS

VICTOR GONCHAR

On September 16, 1999 at approximately 11:00 p.m. Victor Gonchar and Anatoly Krasovsky, head of Krasika Publishing House, failed to return home as expected after leaving a sauna, and have been declared missing. Relatives and colleagues searched local police stations, hospitals, and morgues but found no trace of them.

Krasovsky's wife went to the site where the men were last seen, near the sauna, and found some traces of broken glass on the street, and some broken car parts, and she and other colleagues believe this is glass and debris from his car. Police announced on Belarusian television that a search for Gonchar had been opened. Alexander Lukashenko has said he would take this case under his control and would do everything in his power to find him. However, on September 17, Ivan Pashkevich, deputy head of the presidential administration, commenting on Gonchar's disappearance told Interfax that "Gonchar disappeared for the same reasons Zakharenko [Yuri Zakharenko, former Minsiter of Internal Affairs and a leading opposition activist, disappeared on May 7, 1999] did - in order to attract public attention to the opposition's activities."

Speculation for the motives for a possible abduction center on the fact that the 13th Supreme Soviet session was supposed to open on Sunday, September 19, and Gonchar was due to give a speech. Gonchar's current title as acting chair of the Supreme Soviet makes him the top opposition parliament official after Semyon Sharetski, who has since fled to exile in Lithuania. As acting chair of the parliament still recognized by Western leaders and the OSCE, he had a leading role in the talks to begin between the opposition and the Lukashenko administration.

The international outcry over Gonchar's disappearance has been quite loud recently, with various Western governments demanding that the government of Belarus launch a thorough and transparent investigation of this incident.

GENNADY KARPENKO

Gennady Karpenko, deputy chair of the Supreme Soviet, and head of the opposition's shadow cabinet, died on April 6, 1999 in intensive care in Minsk. He had not regained consciousness after hospitalization on March 31 with cerebral hemorrhage and an unsuccessful operation on April 1. Karpenko was an outspoken opponent of President Lukashenko for many years. He refused to recognize the results of the controversial 1996 referendum, or to join the new legislature handpicked by the President, facing constant persecution by the authorities. Karpenko was elected deputy chair of the United Civil Party and member of the Coordinating Council of Democratic Forces of Belarus. He worked hard to unite the democratic forces in Belarus, chairing the Congress of Democratic Forces in January 1999.

DETENTIONS AND FINES

STANISLAV BOGDANKEVICH

Stanislav Bogdankevich, a deputy of the 13th Supreme Soviet, chair of the United Civic Party, and former chair of the Belarusian Central Bank, has been very active in the opposition movement and has been harassed by the government for his activities. Because of his opposition activities, Bogdankevich has been stripped of his professorship at Belarusian State University and his scholarly books cannot be published in Belarus.
After the opposition's demonstration honoring the Constitution (March 15, 1997) Bogdankevich was asked to admit his guilt for involvement in the unsanctioned demonstration and to hand over firearms, which he did not own.
On April 1, 1997, Bogdankevich was convicted of an unsanctioned picketing of several buildings on March 15 of that year, and fined 2.6 million rubles (about US$40), in spite of his plea for immunity as a deputy protected under the law.
On July 27, 1998, Bogdankevich, together with Alexander Dobrovolsky, also a deputy of the Supreme Soviet, were tried in court for carrying signs through the streets of Minsk calling for the release of Andrei Klimov, Vladimir Koudinov, and Alexei Shydlovski. Both deputies were fined 12 million rubles (US$200).

ALEXANDER DOBROVOLSKY

On July 27, 1998, Alexander Dobrovolsky, a deputy of the Supreme Soviet, was tried in court with Stanislav Bogdankevich for carrying signs through the streets of Minsk calling for the release of Andrei Klimov, Vladimir Koudinov, and Alexei Shydlovski. Both deputies were fined 12 million rubles (US$200).

VICTOR GONCHAR

In July 1997, the Belarusian prosecutor brought criminal charges against Gonchar and the other deputies involved in the unofficial impeachment commission. Gonchar refused to provide information to investigators, stating that he wanted to make a report before the Supreme Soviet. According to Human Rights Watch, Gonchar said that a decree was issued compelling him to come for questioning, and the prosecutor's office conducted a search of his apartment to look for the commission's documents. Investigators found no incriminating materials, although the case remains open.

On March 1, 1999 Victor Gonchar, chair of the opposition Central Electoral Committee, was arrested in Minsk just an hour before the 16-member Committee was supposed to begin its meeting. Valentina Zenkovich, a judge of the Lenin District Court of Minsk, promptly sentenced him to ten days in prison for "organizing an unauthorized meeting" on February 25. According to witnesses, during the arrest Gonchar's car was stopped by a traffic police officer who then broke the driver's side window and ordered Gonchar out of the car. Yuri Zakharenko, former Minister of Internal Affairs, who was present at the scene, described the arrest of his colleague as an "act of political vandalism." Zakharenko was particularly shocked by the fact that Gonchar's relatives, who were in the car with him, were not even allowed to remove their personal things, including money and a mobile telephone, from the car. Gonchar was carrying all the documents necessary to hold an election committee session.

On March 11, after serving a 10-day jail sentence on administrative charges and maintaining a hunger strike for 5 days, Victor Gonchar was released from jail. Human Rights Watch interviewed Gonchar, who recounted that police dressed in camouflage stopped his car and forcibly detained him, breaking his car window in the process. Police first attempted to hang Gonchar up by his hand-cuffed arms in the police van, and when this failed, they pressed him down on the seat and also pressured his eardrums. On March 6, five days into his hunger strike, camouflaged men in masks force-fed glucose to Gonchar through a tube, after twisting his arms behind his back. While force-feeding him, police played loud music, apparently in an effort to drown out his cries.

Prior to his release on March 11, Gonchar was taken to a temporary detention jail (SIZO), held in a freezing cell for three hours, and charged with violation of Art. 190 of the Belarusian Criminal Code, "misappropriation of official authority," a criminal offense punishable by up to two years in prison or a hard labor camp. The charges stem from the assertion of his leadership of the Central Electoral Commission, a position to which he was appointed by the 13th Supreme Soviet.

After Gonchar refused to sign a written obligation not to leave Belarus, prison guards put him in a cell for two hours to force him to sign the documents, but he never complied. The KGB agents drove him around the city for two hours and then threw him out into the snow near the Minsk Ring Road. From there he made his way back home, fainting several times as he was wearing only a light jacket.

In May 1999, Gonchar organized alternative presidential elections, in full accordance with the Belarusian Constitution. The authorities, however, stopped the elections immediately.

In July 1999, Gonchar announced the expiration of President Lukashenko's term in office. According to his relatives and friends, this gesture of his became the last straw, which forced the authorities to devise the scheme to eliminate the dangerously outspoken politician.

MECHESLAV GRYB

Mecheslav Gryb, a deputy and speaker of the 13th Supreme Soviet, was fined 20 million rubles (US$850) for his involvement in the March 15, 1997 demonstration.

LYUDMILA GRYAZNOVA

On October 18, 1999 Ludmila Gryaznova, 13th Supreme Soviet deputy and a member of Charter 97's board of directors, was fined 300 million rubles (approximately US$500 at the official rate) by the Sovietsky District Court according to Article 167 of the Administrative Code for organizing and participating in an unsanctioned rally (the October 17 Freedom March). The court hearing lasted for just an hour and a half.

ANATOLY LEBEDKO

Anatoly Lebedko, a 13th Supreme Soviet deputy and deputy chair of the United Civic Party, was severely beaten in the elevator of his apartment house by two unknown assailants on February 10, 1997. The two men punched Lebedko in the face and kicked him repeatedly after he fell to the floor of the elevator. The assailants did not look through his belongings, nor did they take the briefcase he was carrying. The police came soon after Lebedko asked a neighbor to call. To avoid any suspicion, Lebedko took a blood analysis test for alcohol content. He stated his belief that the beating was not an ordinary criminal assault but was an act of intimidation sanctioned by the government, in retaliation for his political opposition to the Belarusian government. In the spring of 1996, Lebedko had received threatening phone calls three times after a series of his writings appeared in the independent press.
On March 14, 1997, Lebedko was detained by police during an unsanctioned youth demonstration. In September of that year, the court reviewed Lebedko's case, ignoring his complaints that his rights were violated by the police during his detention and that his signature on the police report was forged. Although he was not present at the trial, the court ruled that he must pay a 5 million-ruble fine (US$100) for taking part in an unsanctioned demonstration.
On October 20, 1999 Lebedko, one of the organizers of the October 17 Freedom March, was sentenced by the Sovietsky District Court in Minsk to 10 days of administrative detention. Lebedko pleaded not guilty to the charges of organizing an unsanctioned demonstration.

On September 15, 2000, activists of the United Civic Party, held an unsanctioned picket on Fabrichnaya Street in Minsk to mark the first anniversary of the disappearances of Victor Gonchar and Anatoly Krasovsky, who vanished on September 16, 1999. Fearing a major public upheaval, the authorities sent to the picket site a number of uniformed and plainclothes police officers. During the picketing, two unidentified assailants attacked Lebedko, who tried to defend himself. Police standing nearby did nothing to assist Lebedko or to apprehend the attackers. Other picketers came to his rescue. During the fighting, which was witnessed by various journalists and OSCE representatives, Vyacheslav Sivchik, BPF Adradzhenne deputy chair, suffered bodily injuries. Lebedko went into hiding. For several days after the incident, the apartment building where he lives, and UCP headquarters were under around-the-clock police surveillance.

On October 15, while casting his ballot at a Minsk polling station, Alexander Lukashenko accused Lebedko of receiving $1,500 from the OSCE AMG in Belarus (See Belarus Update Vol. 3, No. 43). Lebedko demanded that the Belarusian leader produce evidence to support the accusations. In mid-November 2000, the Partizanski District Court of Minsk refused to start legal proceedings against Lukashenko on the pretext that the defendant does not reside in the Partizanski district of the Belarusian capital (See Belarus Update Vol. 3, No. 48). In December, 2000, the Frunzensky District Court of Minsk rejected Lebedko's suit on the grounds that it does not consider a statement made by Lukashenko as slanderous. The opposition leader has been notified that the president's statement is "just a personal opinion expressed during an open discussion." Lebedko has decided to take an appeal against the district courts' decision to a higher court.

VASILY NOVIKOV

On April 17, 1997, Vasily Novikov, a deputy of the 13th Supreme Soviet, was put on trial for having taken part in the unsanctioned March 15, 1997 demonstration. The trial was interrupted because of inconsistencies in the police accounts. In the course of two weeks, the police rewrote their account, deleting all inconsistencies in the story, and submitted it to the court once again. Unlike the first open hearing, the newly resumed trial was closed to most journalists and to a representative of the OSCE, was also denied entrance to the trial. Novikov was fined 5 million rubles (about US$200), and his plea, prompted by his unemployment, to change the sentence to the equivalent in prison time, was dismissed

SEMYON SHARETSKI

On March 15, 1997, Sharetski was fined 5 million rubles (about US$200) for his involvement in an unauthorized demonstration in honor of the 1994 Constitution.
On July 21, 1999 deputies of the 13th Supreme Soviet declared Semyon Sharetski acting president until presidential elections could be called, as provided under the 1994 Belarusian Constitution. Sharetski was in Lithuania at the time and made the decision to stay, fearing for his safety if he should return to Minsk. On July 28, Ramunas Mockevicius, the Lithuanian Minister if Internal Affairs said that Sharetski had been granted official protection.

VALERY SHCHUKIN

On November 16, 1996, Valery Shchukin, a 13th Supreme Soviet Deputy, submitted a statement to the Prosecutor General which called for the opening of a criminal case against President Alexander Lukashenko. Shchukin's appeal followed treatment he received from the president's guards upon his attempt to enter the building of the Central Electoral Commission. Shchukin has complained that since 1997 and possibly even earlier his private and public life has been monitored by government agencies with video and computer monitoring systems, and his phone has been tapped. In September 1997, after filing a complaint about this treatment, Shchukin was informed by the Minsk prosecutor general's office, that he was in fact being monitored for security purposes, but that no legal action could be taken against the responsible government agency.
On March 14, 1997, Shchukin was called to the Minsk police station, to answer questions as a witness regarding the mass demonstration that took place on March 10, 1997, where he had been assigned as a reporter working for the newspaper Tovarishch. Shchukin testified that he was forced into the crowd of demonstrators against his will when he was pushed into the picket lines by the police. Shchukin's conversation with the authorities as a witness soon turned into an interrogation, and a charge was written up against the deputy for taking part in an unsanctioned demonstration. He was detained again by the police on March 16 after being followed for many days.
On April 1, 1997, while observing a demonstration against the decision to create an open border with Russia, police used force and inflicted bodily harm in order to drag Shchukin into a police car. Shchukin's press credentials were ignored and he was taken out of the car forcibly against his will. His request to use a phone was denied. He was accused of taking part in an unsanctioned demonstration as well as "discussing socio-political events, criticizing actions of the president and the government, and gesticulating with his hands." Shchukin signed both police reports and was released.
On April 2, 1997, Shchukin was severely beaten by the police at a sanctioned public gathering in support of an independent Belarus.
On September 24, 1997, Shchukin was fined 30 million rubles (US $600) for taking part in a demonstration with fellow journalists in support of their arrested colleague, ORT Bureau Chief Pavel Sheremet.
On November 10, 1997, a criminal case was brought against Shchukin for insulting representatives of the government. The case referred to Shchukin's strong words and accusations against President Lukashenko voiced at an August 30th rally for free speech in Belarus. On November 22, 1997, Shchukin was detained for several hours by police after attending a meeting of the Supreme Soviet deputies.
On December 29, 1997, Ludmila Gryaznova, Gennady Karpenko and Valery Shchukin, were tried on administrative charges for their involvement in a demonstration that took place on November 23, 1997, a year after the controversial referendum that gave Lukashenko near unlimited executive powers. Shchukin took responsibility for organizing the demonstration and was sentenced to ten days of administrative detention.
On February 24, 1998, Shchukin was detained under suspicion of organizing the picketing of a court building during the trial of the young graffiti writers, Vadim Labkovich and Alexei Shydlovski. Shchukin pleaded innocent on the grounds that he attended the picket as a journalist and the case was ruled in his favor.
Just after this incident, Shchukin was arrested for spray painting "Freedom for Deputy Klimov" on the wall of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. He was sentenced to 10 days in jail.
On July 22, 1999 Shchukin was sentenced to 15 days in jail for "petty hooliganism." He was detained by police in Minsk outside the court where the trial of Andrei Klimov was being held. The arrest followed a severe beating. Tatyana Stankevich, Shchukin's defense attorney, appealed the sentence. Anatoly Lebedko was hiding inside the court building and refused to come out as police were waiting for him at the entrance.
On October 18, 1999 at midnight, police visited Shchukin's home and handed him a subpoena to appear in court (in connection with his participation in the October 17 Freedom March) on October 19 at 4 p.m. Early in the morning on the following day policemen were waiting for him near his office in order to bring him to the courthouse. Apparently, they feared he might flee. Shchukin was charged with "organizing and active participation in mass activities which violate public order," a criminal charge which carries a prison term of up to 3 years. On October 19, while detained in the Sovietsky District Police Station, Shchukin was severely beaten.

On April 24, 2000, the trial began over Shchukin and Statkevich, chair of the Belarusian Social-Democratic Party (Narodnaya Gromada) for their participation in Freedom March. Statkevich was also charged with the same offense with respect to the July 27,1999 opposition protest in Minsk. Both men pled not guilty. On June 19, 2000, Judge Igor Krot of the Minsk City Court sentenced Statkevich to a two-year suspended term and Shchukin to one year under Art. 168, para 3, of the Belarusian Criminal Code. The international community strongly condemned the sentences, considering them to be politically motivated. Both Statkevich and Shchukin stressed that the presence of foreign observers at their trial helped lighten the sentences. Statkevich pointed out that the government was afraid to hand down a stiff jail term because the country needs foreign investment from Europe and the United States. He called the trial "an act of political revenge and an attempt by the government to clear the political scene before the elections." "They won't scare us, our party and other democratic organizations will continue to organize protest actions," Statkevich told NTV, Russia's independent television channel, after the ruling was announced. "The authorities' actions leave no doubt that the regime still relies on suppression of fundamental political and civil freedoms," the EU officials said. The EU urged Lukashenko to stop the repression of democratic forces in the country. "The attempts to establish links between Belarus and the international community are in danger while human rights, respected by all Europeans, are not observed in Belarus," concluded the EU statement.

On January 16, 2001, Schukin was turned away from the press-conference given by Vladimir Naumov, Belarussian Interior Minister. Despite Schukin's press ID and the Law "On Press and Other Media", which allows free access to such press-conferences to all journalists, police spokesman Bykov said the event was open only to state-run media. The police then detained Schukin at the entrance to the building where the press- conference was to take place, knocked him to the ground, and twisted his arms behind his back. While trying to subdue Schukin, the policemen accidentally broke the entrance door, made of glass. As a result, Schukin received several deep cuts to his body. According to eye-witnesses, Schukin lost a significant amount of blood during the twenty minute interval before the ambulance arrived, lying on the ground while the policemen continued holding his arms.

STANISLAV SHUSHKEVICH

Stanislav Shushkevich, a deputy of the 13th Supreme Soviet, was visited at his home by the Minsk police on December 17, 1996, with the aim of extracting from him testimony of his participation in that month's public meeting between deputies of the 13th Supreme Soviet and the electorate.
Shushkevich's phone was tapped for an unknown period of time before he was detained on April 2, 1997, at which time he was asked to sign testimony regarding his involvement in the March 15, 1997 demonstration held in honor of the 1994 Constitution. He refused to sign the police report and was released after 2 hours.

PAVEL ZNAVETS

Pavel Znavets, a deputy of the 13th Supreme Soviet, was detained by the police on charges of taking part in an unsanctioned public demonstration on March 15, 1997. He was released after three hours of questioning.
Znavets was detained for five days after taking part in the student protest on March 20, 1997. On March 25, he was taken out of confinement to the regional court where he was fined 13 million rubles (US $600) and sentenced to another five days in solitary confinement. On March 27, Znavets was taken to another court where he was given an additional 5 days of detention and a second fine of 13 million rubles (US $600).

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