Opposition activist Ales Chyhir, detained and beaten by militiamen at night, has had a trial in Babruisk today. Judge Natallya Charapukha remanded the case. Chyhir was discharged form custody.

Ales Chyhir is accused of “disorderly conduct and resistance to militia,” Radio Svaboda reports.

Ales Chyhir says he was beaten by militiamen in the militia department. “My hand, forearm and leg are aching. They stretched my neck, tortured me. Pulled my hair. When I fell down to they ground, they raised me up. Mayor Toustik ruled the violence, master sergeant Pasholkin helped him. They threaten to cut off my fingers. I was taken to an emergency station, but militiamen and doctors act together. An investigator gave me a referral to hospital for the injuries to be registered,” Ales told

.

The Minsk city court dismissed a causational appeal of Syarhei Parsyukevich’s lawyers. The political prisoner is to be transferred to another colony today.

As lawyer Vera Stramkouskaya told to Radio Svaboda, the judgeship of the Minsk city court heard the appeal of the lawyers of Vitsebsk entrepreneur Syarhei Parsyukevich against the decision of the Maskouski district court of Minsk. The appeal was dismissed, and the sentence has come into force.

Andrei Kim (22 year youth activist) was found guilty of the crime on articles 342.1 (organization and execution of actions that violate the public order or active participation in such actions) and 364 (violence or a threat of violence towards a militiaman) of the Criminal Code of Belarus and sentenced him to 1.5 years in prison. Aliaxei Bondar, Artsiom Dubski, Mikhal Kryvau, Mikhal Pashkevich, Ales Straltsou, Ales Charnysheu, Tatsiana Tyshkevich were accused of the breach of article 342.1 of the Criminal Code and sentenced to 2 years of freedom restriction and 20 percent of their salaries will be deducted by the state. Anton Koipish and Uladzimir Siarheyeu were charged with the breach of article 342.1 of the Criminal Code and fined with 100 “basic salaries” ($ 1650).

Katsiaryna Salauyova (20 year old democratic activist from Polatsk) is a member of Malady Front (Youth Front). She is a committed Christian and person of high moral values. She is the daughter of a protestant pastor. She has been twice expelled from Polatsk State University for her political activities. Now she faces criminal charges.
The criminal case opened against her was initially based on three articles of the Criminal Code. Later, the investigation decided to leave only the Article 193.1. The Article 193-1, included into the Criminal Code on December 2005, provides criminal responsibility of up to two years of imprisonment for participation in unregistered civic organizations. Previously, four activists of Partnership and nine activists of Young Front were punished under the Article 193.1, the leader of Young Front Zmicer Dashkevich serving the almost 1.5 year prison sentence under it.

  Paval Kuryanovich, activist of the civil campaign “European Belarus”, was arrested for 15 days for participation in the action of solidarity with Tibetan people struggling for independence from China.

 Natallya Skuharova, judge of the court of the Savetski district of Minsk, found Paval Kuryanovich guilty of “participation in the unauthorised event” and sentenced him to 15 days of arrest. The witnesses at the trial were militiamen Savich and Laptsevich.

Sentenced to 12 days of arrest democratic activist Zmitser Kaspyarovich was diagnosed with hypertensive crisis.

According to “Nasha Niva,” the young man was transferred to prison hospital today. He has increased health problems: doctors diagnosed him with hypertensive crisis, and was appointed medical examination, concerning low-back pain for the next day. “I feel so-so,” Zmitser said about his health.

 The trial in the case of the young activist Andrei Kim is to start on April 1 in the court of Tsentralny district of Minsk.

 The political prisoner Andrei Kim was detained during the protest rally of market vendors on January 21 in Minsk and was arrested for 10 days. After serving the arrest he was placed in a pre-trial detention center. Charges relating Article 364 of the Criminal Code of Belarus (violence or a threat of using violence against a policeman) have been filed against him.

Belarusian human rights defenders decided to nominate Iryna Kozulina to RFK Human Rights Award. Iryna Kazulin, the wife of imprisoned former presidential candidate Alyaksandr Kazulin, died on February 23 at the age of 48 after a long struggle with breast cancer. She struggled a lot for the freedom of her husband and other political prisoners in Belarus.

GUM department store in Minsk has raised a 28-million invoice for participants of the entrepreneurs’ rally on 10 January. Youth activist of the United Civil Party Mikhail Pashkevich said it to “Nasha Niva. “

The Committee for Defence of Repressed ‘Salidarnasc’ would like to draw your attention to the situation with political prisoners in Belarus, in particular to the situation with Syarhei Parsyukevich, the leader of Vitsebsk’s individual entrepreneurs.
After peaceful protests of entrepreneurs on 10 of January 2008 S. Parsyukevich was detained and sentenced to 15 days of arrest. While serving the sentence in the Akrestsina jail (Minsk) he was brutally beaten up by a warder. Aware of the Syarhei’s bronchial asthma, warrant officer Aliaksandr Dulub was also grasping his handcrafted victim by the throat not allowing him to breath. It should be also noted that despite Syarhei’ requests warders of prison did not give him to get necessary medical treatment and pills during the rest of the days of his jailing.
Once S. Parsyukevich came out from prison he filed an appeal to the district prosecutor calling on the fact of torture and misuse of power of militiaman in the Akrestina jail. But instead of investigating his complaint Belarusian authorities opened a case against Syarhey himself, blaming him for attack and inflicting a militiaman.

The human rights center "Viasna" found out, investigation department of Minsk city police had created an investigation group for investigation of the criminal case on the January 10th entrepreneurs’ unsanctioned mass action in Minsk. The criminal case is instigated under two articles of the Criminal Code: Article 342 part 1 of the Criminal Code -- “Organization or active participation in group actions that seriously violate public order”, and Article 339 part 2 “Hooliganism committed by a group of people or connected with resistance”. 

A leader of the movement of individual entrepreneurs, a former police major Syarhei Parsyukevich is arrested. This decision has been taken today by the prosecutor of Maskouski district of Minsk. Syarhei Parsyukevich was called to testify in the case brought up against him.

Despite of the fact that the entrepreneur had come to the prosecutor’s office voluntarily, the prosecutor’s office had decided to detain Syarhei Parsyukevich for 3 days. After this term Parsyukevich is to be released, or charges should be presented to him, or the prosecutor’s office can extend arrest up to 10 days.

A criminal case against political prisoner Andrei Kim will be taken to the court today. The activist of the organisation “Initiative” was detained during disperse of action of entrepreneurs on 21 January. He got 10 days of arrest for participation in the unauthorised event, and later he was guarded to the pretrial detention center and accused of violent acts against militiamen.

Iryna, wife of political prisoner and former presidential candidate Alyaksandr Kazulin, died on 23 February, at 7.40 Minsk time. The 48-year-old woman had a cancer. She felt bad and died in emergency ambulance on the way to hospital…

God rest Iryna Kazulina’s soul. 

Today Alyaksandr Zdzvizhkou, a political prisoner, has been released under the Supreme Court decision.

Today a consideration of case upon cassational appeal of the former deputy editor-in-chief of Zhoda newspaper Alyaksandr Zdzvizhkou has taken place in the Supreme Court of Belarus. Dzvizhkou had been sentenced to three years of imprisonment for publishing the Prophet Mohammed cartoons.

Considering the exceptional circumstances (the journalist has an elderly mother), the Supreme Court altered the decision of Minsk city court, and commuted the sentence from three years to three months of imprisonment. As said by lawyer Maya Alyaksandrava, today Zdzvizhkou is to be released.

The activist of movement “For Freedom” Eduard Dzmukhovskiy got a summon according to which he has to come for interrogation in local KGB office.
Officers of KGB were waiting for him near his house and gave him the summons, made him to sign for it. What the reason of his interrogation is he doesn’t know.

Political prisoner Andrei Klimau has been released and is to arrive in Minsk on 16 February morning. Wife of political prisoner Tatsyana Klimava said it to the Charter’97 press center. “Andrei phoned home. Our daughter spoke to him. He said he was being guarded to Kalinkavichy from the Mazyr colony. There he will take a train and arrive in Minsk in the morning on 16 February. He didn’t manage to say anything more,” Tatsyana Klimava said.

Iryna Kazulina: “My husband was offered release at cost of dishonourable escape from the country”
“I would like to listen to the conditions of release offered by Lukashenka to Alyaksandr. The things said by his messenger to us were unacceptable. It would be a dishonourable flight from the country,” the open letter of the wife of the former candidate for presidency Alyaksandr Kazulin, Iryna Kazulina, published at the web site of the politician.

The first session of the Public Commission on defence of youth activist Andrei Kim, arrested at the entrepreneurs’ rally on 21 January, took place in Minsk on 4 February.
A criminal case on the article 364 of the Criminal Code (violence or threat of violence against a militia officer to impede lawful activity) was initiated against the 21-year-old activist of the youth campaign “Initiative.” The young man faces up to 6 years of imprisonment.

It has been told by the activist’s mother Tatsyana at the meeting of the steering committee of the public commission “Free Andrei Kim”. The charges have been presented for violation of the Article 364 of the Criminal Code (inflicting injury to a policemen in the line of duty). The punishment for that is up to 6 year of imprisoement.

Today the political prisoner and entrepreneur Yury Lyavonau has been released. He told his family about his discharge over the phone when he left the colony in Baranavichy. At the moment friends are on the way to Baranavichy in order to meet the former prisoner and take him home.

As we have informed, previously the measure of restraint for Yury Lyavonau, like for his business partner Mikalay Autukhovich, was changed from imprisonment to corrective labour. Mikalay Autukhovich was suddenly released last Friday.

Zmiter Dashkevich has been from the Shklou colony today. According to Zmiter, the news about his release came as a surprise for him. Allegedly, an order came out that a term of punishment (1.5 year) was reduced to 1 year, thus Zmiter served 4 months more than he was due, nn.by reports. It should be reminded that Zmiter Dashkevich was sentenced to 1.5 year of prison for participation in the unregistered organisation in November, 2006 (he was in a remand jail since September, 2006).

A trade union committee of Francis Skaryna Homel State University has decided to expel a student Zmitser Zhaleznichenka from the university. The decisive word is to be said by the dean.
“At the today’s meeting I tried to persuade those present that I hadn’t done the things I am accused of,” Zhaleznichnka said. “And I was accused with use of foul language in a public place. When I went down to the underground walkway, a policeman who was driving by in a car heard me “swearing”.

Ruslan Aniskevich, a judge of the Minsk City Court, on Friday sentenced Alyaksandr Zdvizhkow, deputy editor of the now-closed newspaper Zhoda, to three years in a medium-security prison over the reprinting of controversial Danish cartoons of Prophet Muhammad.