On February 16th place in Paris in front of Eiffel Tower an action of solidarity with Belarus took place. Participants of the action where holding national Belarusian flags and slogans: “For free elections” and “February 16, the Day of Solidarity with Belarus”. They collected signatures under a petition to the Belarusian authorities, demanding free and fair elections on March 19. The protest was organized in association with an NGO “Paris-Minsk” (www.paris-minsk.org).
Authorities are fabricating criminal case against one of Zubr leaders Yauhien Afnagel. According to Zubr press-service on February 17 person who identified himself as KGB agent came to school where one of Zubr activists studied. He said that procedure of starting criminal case against Afnagel under article 173 of Criminal code (involvement of under-aged persons to anti-social behavior) has started. He also offered to witness against Afnagel and against Zubr activist Natallia Ushko. As an award for perjury he promised assistance during finals.
On February 17 in Barysau house searches in the apartments of eight activists of the Zubr resistance movement were held. Searches were carried out on the sanction of the prosecutor’s office. Printed materials were seized from some activists.
A political prisoner Andrei Klimau, who was transferred to a village of Barshchouka Rechytsa district last week, does not exclude that he could have been passed to other hands and even abducted, like Hanchar, Krasouski or Zakharanka. During the transporting policemen-guards talked on the phone. They were nervous, and they were not talking to Klimau where they are transporting him. “I was transported as a persistent offender or a mafia boss,” Klimau said to Radio Svaboda.
On February 16 one of the central streets of German capital students with their mouths closed by scotch. Each of them had a tablet on his chest with the words: “That’s how freedom of speech looks like in Belarus”, “Opposition in Belarus In Ganger”, “Freedom of expression only on paper”, “Belarusian young people in prisons”. The protest was organized by Bonn branch of the Amnesty International.
The Foreign Ministry of Slovak Republic is concerned by tightening repressions against the representatives of the Belarusian civil society in the run-up to the presidential elections in Belarus, the special statement of the Slovak Foreign Ministry received by the Charter’97 reads.
“We call upon our supporters: to sum up the results the of voting, to learn about the results, to gather on October Square in Minsk on March 19 at 8 p.m., as it is done all over the world, where supporters of this or that candidate get together to celebrate victory. Our meeting is completely peaceful and legal from the point of view of a citizen’s rights,” told the leader of the HQ of democratic presidential hopeful Milinkevich, Syarhei Kalyakin, during the on-line conference on Radio Svaboda.
Today the candidate for presidency Alyaksandr Milinkevich had a meeting with a political prisoner Andrei Klimau. They had a conversation in Homel, where Alyaksandr Milinkevich met with his voters.
Chairperson of the Union of Poles Anzhalika Borys has not passport now. February 19, she was coming home from Poland crossing the border at customs station Babrouniki-Berastavitsa. Belarusian frontier guards made her stay at the station for 4 hours and withdrew her passport, as Radio Svaboda repots.
The Embassy of the Czech Republic expresses deep concern about Belarusian TV false statements and conclusions about the Embassy in Minsk. “The Belarusian TV, in its the February 19 „Panarama“ programme spread disinformation in an open attempt to discredit our country and the Czech Embassy in Belarus,” the statement of the Embassy of the Czech Republic, received by the Charter’97 press center, reads.
Investigation on the criminal case of Malady Front (Young Front) activist Zmitser Kaspiarovich is ceased. The activist is accused of an attempt to hang out a white-red-white flag on the building of Minsk City Executive Committee on article 339 of Criminal Code. The trial is to start February 27, at 10 a.m. in the Moskovskiy District Court.
February 18, about 70 people gathered at Smolenskaya-Siennaya Square in Moscow, in front of the Russian Foreign Office, to call upon the Russian powers to further democratic changes in the neighboring Belarus. The action participants urged the Russian powers to cease support for Lukashenka’s dictator regime, to assist democratic Presidential election and to halt talks on establishment of the so-called “union state” unless Belarus is represented by the legitimate powers. The full text of the appeal to the Russian Foreign Office can be viewed and signed on the link http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/378806998?ltl=1140259973.
February 18, in Kiev near the Russian Embassy, a protest action against the support rendered by the Russian Government for Lukashenka’s regime took place. The piquet was assisted by a number of activists of the alliance “Maydan”, community “Third Way” and initiative “Solidarity!”. The participants of the action were keeping posters with slogans “To Stop Support For Dictatorship Of Belarus!”, “Stop Supporting Dictator!”, “Russia! You Are The Last To Support Him!”.
A meeting of democratic candidate Alyaxandr Milinkevich with people took place at the entrance to the City Culture Center “Khimik” in the center of Svietlagorsk, while a police unit were waiting in the hall.
The European Union has urged the relevant Belarusian authorities to reconsider their decision to outlaw RADA, an umbrella organization for seven youth non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
On February 17 a political prisoner, deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the 13th convocation Andrei Klimov was transferred from the town of Krupki, Minks region, to the village of Barshchouka, Rechytsa district, Homel region, to serve the sentence (correctional labour) there.
On February 19 members of the initiative group of the single democratic candidate Alyaksandr Milinkevich Vlada Tokarava and Kanstantsin Perahuda were detained in Vitsebsk. Members of the initiative group had put up a stand with a portrait and biography of Milinkevich by the railway station.
As stated by representatives of the European Union, they see a possibility to carry out exit-polls as one of the elements of transparent, free and fair elections. Would it be possible for sociological services to carry out such polls in Belarus during the presidential elections on March 19?
Aleksandr Milinkevich, united opposition forces` presidential candidate, began his campaign tour of the country`s provinces with a visit to Bobruisk, the second largest city of the Mogilyov region, on February 18.
A correspondent of a leading Polish daily Gazeta Wyborcza was expelled from Belarus. Waclaw Radziwinowicz was approached by two Belarusian officers at a railway station in the border town of Grodno and informed that he was barred entry to Belarus. He was then placed in a train back to Poland. Radziwinowicz, who had all the required documents with him, planned to interview the authoritarian president of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, tald PAP.
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