Vasil Paliakou, Homel
On 13 April Halina Sytsko, Judge of the Homel Savetski District Court, fined Vasil Paliakou, Chair of the Homel region organization of the United Civil Party, 875,000 rubles (about $287) for refusing to be fingerprinted by the police.
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Uladzimier Kacora
Homel Savetski Tax Inspection ordered Homel member of the For Freedom movement Uladzimer Katsora to pay 10 million roubles for the Civil Initiatives public association, closed down in 2003. Meanwhile, the activist says he has declared his retirement from the position of the head of liquidation commission of Civil Initiatives. Continue reading »
Valer Rybchanka, Homel
Judge Vasil Biahun of Homel Regional Court has ruled to reverse a 700,000-rouble fine to Valery Rybchanka, local opposition Communist leader, his civil case being sent for reconsideration at Homel Chyhunachny Court. Continue reading »
Tatsiana Bublikava
The independent journalists Tatsiana Bublikava and Aleh Ryzhkou were detained in Homel.
As the website baj.by reports, the incident took place on 30 October, when the journalists were filming an interview in Homel streets. They asked passers-by their opinions on swine flu epidemic.
As Tatsiana Bublikava said, policemen Maksim Ihnatchyk and Ihar Tarasau came up to them and demanded to show a permit for shooting. Police officers remained unsatisfied with journalist certificates and explanations of the journalists that they were fulfilling the editor’s task and didn’t need a permit to shoot in the place.
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Leanid Sudalenka, Homel
Homel civil and political figures on the criminal prosecution of Leanid Svetsik
Leanid Sudalenka, Chair of the Legal Initiative’s Homel office, human rights activist, Homel
- The Vitsebsk human rights activist Leanid Svetsik was convicted of sending letters with threats on behalf of the unregistered ultra-right organization RNE (Russian National Unity). The offence is prosecuted under Article 130-1 of the Criminal Code of Belarus (fomenting racial, national or religious hatred). As far as I know, Svetsik’s work was to render legal assistance to the receivers of the letters and that was his only fault. Now he will have to pay a huge fine of 11,000 USD, which roughly equals to a 3-year’s average salary in Belarus. It looks like the State has made up its mind to earn money on the human rights activist and his big family. I am sure that Leanid Svetsik will find a decent way out of the complicated situation, for he has not admitted the verdict yet. He is going to appeal it, therefore he considers himself innocent! Continue reading »
According to www.odsgomel.org, a Chernobyl nuclear disaster fighter has been sentenced to 10 years of imprisonment for a BYR 10,000 worth theft (USD 3,5).
Siarhei Paharski was convicted by Homel Chyhunachny Court in 2001. Now he is addressing ‘the President, the ambassador, the Government and the people of the United States’ as well as heads of independent human rights organizations, mass media and businessmen etc. with a request to protect his rights.
‘Our heartiest congratulations on the Constitution Day!’ – this is what many Homel residents heard on 15 March.
The action organized by the Belarusian Pro-Democratic Forces was to mark the day of the Belarusian Constitution. The activists distributed leaflets saying that today Belarus marks the 15th anniversary of the adoption of the current version of the Constitution. Continue reading »
According to Siarhei Belikau, special investigator of Homel Regional Prosecutor’s Office, the case of the murderers of ‘the arsonist of Pukhavichy’ would soon be brought before Homel Regional Court. The exact date of the proceedings will have been fixed by the end of the month.
Belarusian high police officials say they will have to fingerprint each and every male citizen of Belarus unless the 4 July, 2008 explosion is solved by the investigation. Since www.odsgomel.org keeps receiving evidence of Homel residents being forced to take their fingerprints, the city human rights experts decided to comment on the lawfulness of the action.
