Belarus: Judicial harassment of six human rights defenders
09/04/2021
Judicial harassment /
Arbitrary detention
April 9, 2021
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a partnership of FIDH and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in Belarus. Description of the situation:
The Observatory has been informed about the judicial harassment against
Enira Branitskaya, lawyer and human rights expert, having cooperated with Human Constanta [1], as well as of the arbitrary detention of
Natallia Trenina,
Hanna Sakalouskaya, and the arbitrary detention and subsequent release of
Volha Shapakouskaya, five members of the Belarusian public association ‘Zvyano’ (“Chain” in English) [2] , amid the ongoing crackdown on human rights defenders and organisations in Belarus.
Judicial harassment /
Arbitrary arrest
March 10, 2021
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a partnership of FIDH and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in
Belarus.
Description of the situation:
The Observatory has been informed about the judicial harassment against the Human Rights Centre ‘Viasna’ as reprisals for its work documenting human rights abuses and providing legal assistance to victims amid the ongoing crackdown on human rights defenders and organisations in Belarus.
On February 16, 2021, the Investigative Committee of the Republic of Belarus revealed that a preliminary investigation into the activities of “organisations that position themselves as human rights organisations” was ongoing. It is clear that the statement of the Investigative Committee refers to ‘Viasna’: on the same day, within the framework of the preliminary investigation, the Main Director
The Human Rights Center Viasna does not give up.
Civil society organizations in Belarus have come out in support of the human rights center Viasna, which has come under criminal prosecution. The Main Directorate for the Investigation of Crimes in the Sphere of Organized Crime and Corruption of the central office of the Investigative Committee of the Republic of Belarus is investigating a criminal case that was initiated into the activities of the human rights center. As follows from the official comments of the Investigative Committee, in the opinion of the investigating authorities, Viasna allegedly “financed the protests,” the website Radio Racyja writes.
OSCE Media Freedom Representative deeply concerned about state of media freedom and freedom of expression in Belarus
Format
VIENNA, 16 February 2021 The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Teresa Ribeiro, expressed her serious concern over today s searches targeting the Belarusian Association of Journalists and other media workers across the country.
According to reports, on the morning of 16 February law enforcement representatives searched the office of the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ), as well as the homes of Oleg Ageev and Boris Goretskiy, the Deputy Chairpersons of BAJ. During the search, the officers seized laptops, telephones, documents and personal money. Law enforcement representatives also searched the apartment of the son of the Chairperson of BAJ, Andrey Bastunets, and seized his laptops and telephones. Other organizations and individuals, including at least three journalists in the cities of Gomel and Mogilev, were also reportedly searched.
15.02.2021, 10:29
Photo: Lietuvos Policija
Victims of the Belarusian security forces turn to the law enforcement agencies of the EU countries for help.
In Belarus, in the six months since the beginning of the protests, not a single criminal case has been opened on violence against demonstrators, even though, according to official data, the Investigative Committee of the Republic of Belarus received about 1,800 such statements. Meanwhile, some victims took the opportunity to investigate crimes within the framework of universal jurisdiction and appealed to the law enforcement agencies of the EU countries, Deutsche Welle writes.
Will Lithuania help the injured Belarusians?
Lithuania became the first country to launch an investigation against the Belarusian security forces within the framework of universal jurisdiction. Indeed, an investigation is underway, and at the moment (as of February 9, 2021 - ed.), four people have been recognized as victims, but their number may change,