In one statement and several press releases over the last few days, the Human Rights Center VIASNA documents severe irregularities in the recent Belarusian elections. This new information strongly supports the initial impressions that the elections were a farce, and that President Lukashenko has reinforced his position as Europe´s last true dictator. (22-OCT-04)
The first statement, released by VIASNA, but on behalf of the Prague-based Committee for Free Belarus, on 18 October, the day after the elections, reads:
Statement
Members of the Committee for Free Belarus express their indignation with manipulation and falsification of the results of the referendum about the amendment of the Constitution as well as of the Parliamentary election of Belarus. Factual absence of representatives of opposition in election commissions, intense state propaganda and deprival of the possibility to lead pre-electoral agitation, brutal pressurization of students, military servants and other groups of electors, exclusion of a number of well-known oppositional politicians are only several examples witnessing Aliaksandr Lukashenka´s regime openly tramples all democratic principles.
Prague, 18 October 2004
On the same day, VIASNA itself issued the following two press releases:
Press release 1
In Orsha Members of Election Commissions Showed Their Spirit and Didn’t Sign False Protocols
In their complaint to Central Election Commission and Vitsebsk Regional Prosecutor’s Office the candidates to deputies H. Ananyew, H. Antrashkevich, H. Dziamidaw and V. Ihnatok wrote:
At polling station #26 observers found that members of the polling station commission openly discussed the numbers which they were to put into the final protocol. Protocols of polling station #30 were filled with pencil. At polling station #13 the results of the voting, pronounced by the polling station didn’t correspond to the protocol that was submitted to circuit election commission. There are members of the polling station commission who refused to sign the false report. The same situation was at polling station #35, where after repeated re-calculations there were found about 400 additional signatures. During the calculation of votes at polling station #13 piles of ballots were carried out to a separate room for some manipulations. Three members of the commission refused to sign the protocol due to the evident forgery of the results of the voting. In two hours there was composed one more protocol (without calculation of votes). It was signed by all members of the commission except for the member of the commission Salawiova. The final protocol of the voting wasn’t hanged out. After the calculation of votes at polling station #19 the head of the polling station committee spent three hours in a separate room with ballots and talked by the phone. The final protocol of voting was filled after the consultations. All these facts witness that the results in this and all other polling stations were falsified. That’s why we ask to find the results of the election in Arshanskaya election circuit invalid or punish the persons who violated the Electoral Code.
A copy of this complaint was filed to OSCE and mass media.
Press release 2
Head of Working Group of PACE Parliamentary Assembly Uta Zapf Is Pulled out of Polling Station by Head of Election Commission
According to RFE/RL
The head of the Working Group on Belarus of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Uta Zapf came to Minsk as an official observer of the Parliamentary election. When she attempted to come to a polling station, she was pulled out by the head of the polling station election committee. According to Uta Zapf, her colleagues and she also faced with the reluctance of members of election committees to answer their questions. She said that Aliaksandr Lukashenka made it impossible to observe the election and the referendum according to OSCE standards.
On 19 October, VIASNA issued another press release addressing the sentencing of Valery Levanewski and his substitute Aliaksandr Vasilyew of the National Strike Committee of Entrepreneurs. The release read like this:
Press release
College Board of Hrodna Regional Court Upholds Sentence to Levanewski and Vasilyew
According to non-state newspaper “Pahonia”
Having considered the cassation complaints of the head of the national strike committee of entrepreneurs Valery Levanewski and his substitute Aliaksandr Vasilyew the College Board on criminal cases of Hrodna Regional Court left in force the sentence to them, two years of colony. It means that soon they will be transferred to a penal colony from Hrodna Investigative Isolator.
Before the trial Valery Levanewski solicited for personal participation in the sitting of the College Board. The petition was turned down. In his cassation complaint Valery Levanewski wrote that “the case was fabricated for political reasons” and Aliaksandr Vasilyew wrote that he didn’t commit any crimes and claimed innocent.
The opinion of the attorney, Aliaksandr Birylaw, is that the verdict was issued with violations of the legislative norms. At the sitting of the College Board he described all violations of the criminal process code that were made during the investigation and the trial:
— None of the solicitations of Levanewski and Vasilyew were satisfied, none of their witnesses were interrogated, — stated Aliaksandr Birylaw.
However, these arguments didn’t convince the judges. The College Board on criminal cases with the judge Aliaksandr Korzun at the head stated there were no reasons to set the sentence aside.
We should remind that the leaders of Hrodna entrepreneurs were found guilty in violation of part 2 of article #368 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus, “Public insult of president accompanied with charges in commitment of a felony” and sentenced to two years of colony.
On 20 October, VIASNA issued yet another press release, this time addressing the trial of the Russian TV journalist Pavel Sheremet. This release reads:
Press release
Trial of Sheremet Is Delayed
At 9 p.m. the trial of the Russian TV journalist Pavel Sheremet was to have started at Minsk Savetski Borough Court. We should remind that on 17 October Sheremet was assaulted by two unknown persons in plain clothes. As a result of manipulations at the Minsk Savetski Borough Board of Internal Affairs the journalist turned from victim into offender. The police charged him in small disorderly conduct – assault on two men. At first the journalist was taken to the detention center in Akrestsin Street, but soon transferred to a hospital, where the doctors made their diagnosis – brain concussion.
Many journalists, politicians, well-known public activists and human rights defenders came to the trial. Judge Ruslan Kazadayew said that the case materials weren’t submitted to the court and therefore the trial was delayed for unknown time. It’s quite interesting that Kazadayew and Sheremet were friends during their student years.
Yesterday, 21 October, yet another VIASNA press release, this time on the continuing protests, read:
Press release
Public Protests against Falsification of Election and Referendum Continue in Belarus
On 20 October in the Tsentralnaya Square in Minsk there took place the third action of protest against the officially stated results of the election and the referendum. Before the beginning of the action the police detained one of the coordinators of the unregistered “Zubr” movement Yawhen Afnahel and took him to Minsk Leninski Borough Board of Internal Affairs, where he was sentenced to 10 days of jail for participation in the protest action of 18 October.
In the beginning of the action of 20 October there were also detained ten persons who came there with anti-presidential slogans. Among them there was the “Zubr” coordinator Zmitser Barodka from the city of Barysaw.
On 21 October the judge Aliaksey Bychko sentenced one of the detainees, Vaytko, to ten days of jail. Zmitser Barodka was charged with organization of the action and sentenced to 15 days of jail.
Another coordinator of the “Zubr” movement, Aleh Miatselitsa, was detained in his house in the town of Bialynichy by the head of Bialynichy Town Board of Internal Affairs.
The same day, VIASNA´s analysis of the current political climate in Belarus was that a new wave of political repression has begun. The following is the full press release:
Press release
New wave of political repression has started in Belarus
The Parliamentary election and the republican referendum in Belarus were conducted with numerous violations of the national electoral legislation and international standards. The falsifications and manipulations that were committed during the electoral campaign resulted in the wave of fair protest of the country’s citizens. That’s why the authoritarian regime in Belarus started an unheard assault on human rights and liberties.
More than sixty persons were detained for participation in the peaceful protest actions of 18-20 October. 29 of them were arrested, seven fined huge sums. Some of the participants of the action (including minor girls) were severely beaten by the police. The leader of the United Civil Party Anatol Liabedzka was hospitalized, as well as a female activist of youth democratic movement, who was unconscious.
The Main Board of Internal Affairs of Minsk City Executive Committee initiated a criminal case against the activists of oppositional parties Maryna Bahdanovich, Aliaksandr Tsynkevich and the human rights activist Aleh Volchak for organization of the protest actions in Minsk. All of the accused took part in the election as candidates to the Parliament.
Such fundamental civil rights and liberties as the liberty of expression, the liberty of speech, the freedom of assembly and association are violated more and more often. There has been established a strict system of censorship and opposition-minded citizens are harassed.
Human Rights Center “Viasna” considers the situation in the country as a new wave of political repression, aimed at complete suppression of civil rights and liberties and establishment of dictatorial regime.
Finally, today 22 October, VIASNA followed up with the following two press releases, the first addressing the robbery of the flat of Head of BPF Ales Mikhalevich, the second to the sentencing of ´Zubr´ coordinator Aleh Miatselitsa to seven days´ administrative arrest:
Press release 1
Flat of Vice-Head of BPF Ales Mikhalevich Is Robbed
Mr. Mikhalevich is on a mission to Slovakia. His wife and small daughter were at home when the flat was robbed. Mikhalevich’s wife Milana didn’t hear anything. Even her daughter didn’t wake up, which witnesses that the thieves were very quiet.
In the morning Milana and her daughter saw that there was a mess in the flat, the kitchen window was open (the flat is on the ground floor) and a kitchen knife was lying in the sitting room. Among the stolen things there is the notebook that belonged to Mr. Mikhalevich, golden embellishments, mobile phones and money. The robbers searched the whole flat, looking for valuables and documents.
At present the investigative group of Minsk Tsentralny Borough Board of Internal Affairs examines the flat. It’s too early to speak of any versions, but the police are of the opinion that the thieves will be found quite soon.
Press release 2
“Zubr” Coordinator Is Sentenced to 7 Days of Jail
On 21 October the coordinator of the “Zubr” movement in Mahiliow region Aleh Miatselitsa was sentenced to 7 days of administrative arrest. The police detained him at about 12 a.m. They refused to explain why.
According to his wife Natallia Miatselskaya, Aleh was charged with small disorderly conduct and disobedience to legal demands of the police. According to the police witnesses at the trial, Aleh Miatselitsa started to shout insults to the policemen and they had to detain him. However, he didn’t take the blame and stated that the policemen insistently invited him to the police without any explanations and he refused to come with them.
“From some sources I found out that somebody saw Aleh on the TV during the action of protest against the results of the election and the referendum and the police wanted to draw on him a report for that”, — said Natallia Miatselitsa to RFE/RL.
