Chronicles of Human Rights Violations officially presented in Belarus: repressions are more plentiful

In the run-up to the presidential elections authorities are stepping up repressions and attempts to control civil activities maximally.

The forms of repressions against opposition activists have changed. It has been informed by the President of the International Federation of Human Rights Ales Byalatski, offering the Review-Chronicle of Human Rights violations in Belarus in 2010 on March 9, BelaPAN informs.

As said by him, the authorities reduced the formal side of repressions. “In 2009 the number of administrative arrests for participation in protest rallies of opposition, criminal persecution for political activism was much lower. At the same time, the number of completely illegal methods of pressure, such as harsh beating and torture of pro-democracy activists, preventive detentions before protest rallies, detentions of activists and taking them away outside Minsk by the unknown has increased,” Byalatski said.

“Despite of numerous petitions to the Prosecutor’s office, and investigatory agencies, neither we nor the activists managed to make the cases related to abductions to be investigated properly,” the human rights activist noted.

As Byalatski said, the regime actively used such a form of isolation of young oppositional activists as “forcible drafting to the army and changing their diagnoses about their being not able-bodied”.

Human rights activists note the growth of repressions in the run-up to the election campaigns in 2010. “It concerns the harsh disband of the latest oppositional rallies (such as solidarity rallies and even St. Valentine’s celebration) and non-registration of organisations, and warnings to independent mass media and non-governmental organisations. It shows that the authorities have started preparation to the presidential election in the way they understand it. This includes “screw’s tightening”, crackdown increase and attempts to control civil activities maximally,” Byalatski stated.

In general Belarusian human rights activists characterize the year 2009 as the year of failed hopes.

“Hopes had been caused by promises of the Belarusian regime to start serious reforms in the political sphere of the country. In response to these promises the European Union unfroze its contacts with Alyaksandr Lukashenka. In 2009 Minsk was visited by six ministers of foreign affairs of the EU, Lukashenka was received by the Pope, he had meetings with Italian President Silvio Berlusconi and Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite, that is in fact he is no longer a non grata person in the EU. In fact without any conditions Belarus has become a member of the Eastern partnership program,” Byalatski said.

However, as stated by the Vice President of the International Human Rights Federation, changes about which the regime had been saying, are left in word only.

The de-criminalization of Article 193-1, providing for criminal responsibility for activities on behalf of unregistered organisation, hasn’t taken place. Moratorium on death penalty hasn’t been imposed, and changes in the legislation had solely cosmetic character,” the human rights activist said.

He offered an example of amendments to the Electoral Code of Belarus. “Changes were adopted hastily: Lukashenka had consultations with Yarmoshyna only one time and changed to the Code were adopted, even without accommodation with the ODIHR OSCE. However, amendments providing for expanding powers of observers have disappeared from the draft amendments,” Byalatski informed.