In their joint appeal (see the attachment, right) to the UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers Ms. Gabriela Knaul, Belarusian human rights community asks to give consideration to the facts of persecution of lawyers by Belarusian executive authorities.

According to the appeal authors – the representatives of Belarusian human rights organisation – the withdrawal of law licences imposed on Uladzimir Toustsik, Tamara Harayeva, Aleh Aheyeu and Tatsiana Aheyeva, threatens an access of their clients to an effective remedy and retards the course of justice

Two of the lawyers lost the license as they have given in to the pressure of the KGB and refused to defend the political prisoners.  

However you slice it, they will cancel the license
According to the appeal “based on a contract, Toustsik is a legal defender of Iryna Khalip, the wife of the ex-candidate for presidency Andrei Sannikau. […] She had to give up his services due to moral pressure by KGB officers and threats to disbar Toustsik. By an enactment of the Ministry of Justice on 14 February 2011, Uladzimir Toustsik was disbarred because of grave violations of the licensing legislation, namely because of his refusal to provide Iryna Khalip with legal assistance.”

A similar fate overtook another lawyer – Tamara Harayeva, who had been compelled to reject the legal assistance to the house-arrested political prisoner.

Another political prisoner’s advocate Aleh Aheyeu hadn’t refused defending his client, although his defendant was an ex-candidate for presidency Aleś Michalevič. Nevertheless his licence was disbarred as well – on account of other formal reasons.

Not a chance to speak
The human rights defenders note that no disciplinary proceedings were instituted against above-mentioned lawyers; none of them was invited to the session of the Board of Experts of the Ministry of Justice where the decision of their disbarment was made. “Hereby, the bar lawyers did not have an opportunity to defend themselves,”- state the appeal authors.

They believe that Ministry’s steps against the lawyers are in fact a politically motivated persecution, which is a violation of several international obligations of Belarus.

The human right defenders point out that it is not the first time that Belarusian lawyers are subjected to persecution for their activity. As a proof, they present data from the analytical review prepared by the International Observation Mission in the Republic of Belarus.

Stood up for colleagues? You have it, too!
Minister of Justice Mr. Halavanau continued the outrage. Soon after the disbarment of four above-mentioned lawyers, it was reported about measures taken against the Chairperson of the Minsk City Bar Aliaksandr Pylchanka (left).

By an order of Minister Viktar Halavanau, he was excluded from the Board of Experts on Advocacy in the Republic of Belarus. Respective information (explanation not offered) appeared on the web-site of the Ministry soon after Pylchanka had supported the repressed lawyers and warned about the threat to independence of advocacy.

The UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers was informed of the prosecution of Pylchanka by correspondent appeal (on the right) which was signed by leading representatives of human rights movement in Belarus, including the President of the Human Rights House Tatsiana Revyaka.  

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