On 23 March 2011 international civil society representatives, non-governmental organisations and foundations expressed their deep concern with the repressions during and after the Presidential Election 2010 in Belarus to president of Lithuania Grybauskaite.
Joint letter to president Grybauskaite
In a joint letter addressed to her and her chief advisor human rights orgnisations ask Grybauskaite to personally enter into communication with Alexander Lukashenko advocating the release of all political prisoners and cancellation of the criminal and administrative trials connected to the events of the 19th of December 2010.
“The Belarusian authorities have detained over 700 people, almost 40 people were accused in the criminal case on mass riot, eleven more are suspects in similar cases. Several have already been sentenced to different terms in jail and scores have been given administrative fines. In addition, some of the accused are being kept in custody or under house arrest”, says the letter.
Grybauskaite to advocate the matter of political prisoners
Human rights organizations say that Grybauskaite, as the President of Lithuania, a neighbour state with strong historic ties to the Belarusian people and the current chair of the OSCE, is in a particularly strong position to advocate the urgent matter of political prisoners in Belarus. They hope that president of Lithuania will take advantage of this position.
They also remind Lithuanian president that human rights organisations and advocates in Belarus are constantly being
intimidated and face difficulties in providing legal assistance to the oppressed people.
New wave of government’s harassment
The new Human Rights Watch’s report published on 14 March 2011 says that after more than a decade of stifled civic freedoms, Belarusian civil society activists and independent media face new government harassment and threats in the wake of the postelection protest.
This report, based on research conducted in Minsk in February 2011, documents the human rights violations that have occurred since the election – including abuse of detainees, trials behind closed doors, and raids on human rights organizations – which have led to a serious deterioration in the already poor state of human rights in Belarus.
On December 19 and in the days that followed, police arrested hundreds of people and physically abused most of those they arrested by punching, pushing, kicking, and hitting them with batons. During the next two weeks, administrative courts sentenced at least 725 people to between 10 and 15 days “administrative detention”— or misdemeanor detention – for participating in an unsanctioned gathering.
Trials behind closed doors
Trials took place behind closed doors, with journalists and relatives excluded, and hearings typically lasting between 10 and 15 minutes. In most cases, the accused had no defense counsel and was not allowed to call witnesses. Detainees served their sentences in overcrowded cells, where they were forced to sleep on the floor, share beds, or take turns sleeping. Many say their cells were freezing and lacked toilets, that there was no easy access to medical treatment, and that there were no hygiene items for women.
As of March 7, 2011, 38 people were charged for organizing and/or participating in riots, including opposition members and 5 former presidential candidates. More than 30 people remained in pretrial custody at the end of February.
While detainees have occas
ionally had a lawyer present during interrogations, none has been able to meet discretely or privately with their legal representation. Lawyers for several detainees say they were warned unofficially by the Ministry of Justice and other officials not to speak publicly about their clients’ conditions; some have been disbarred.
Raids in NGO offices
In late December 2010, authorities raided the offices of at least three prominent human rights groups and seized computer equipment and documents. Since it is a criminal offense in Belarus to participate in the activities of a non-registered association, those who work for civil society groups have faced the threat of criminal prosecution for years: today they are acutely vulnerable.
Police and security forces also searched the premises of four independent media outlets and the homes of 12 journalists and confiscated their equipment. Authorities revoked the license of at least one radio station.
The websites of online news and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) are the only sources of independent information due to the government’s tight control of print and broadcast media. Now their future is at risk due to new internet regulations that give the government more powers to clamp down on online sources.
Defense lawyers under pressure
The most shocking fact is that the factual crackdown not only of civil society but also of an independent judicial system takes place in the country.
Nongovernmental groups and defense lawyers described how the government pressured lawyers representing individuals charged in connection with the December events. This, together with the difficulties that lawyers face accessing clients, means that more lawyers are refusing to take on ‘political’ cases.
Licences of lawyers revoked
The Ministry of Justice targeted lawyers who spoke about abuses against their clients. On December 29, 2010, the ministry publicly accused a number of lawyers of breaching professional ethics by “presenting information about the investigation, their clients’ opportunities to avail of legal assistance, their clients’ health status and prison conditions, and the work of law enforcement bodies of the country in a biased manner.”
On January 4, 2011, the Ministry of Justice asked the Minsk City Bar Association to investigate lawyer Pavel Sapelka –
who was representing presidential candidate Andrey Sannikau (right) and opposition party leader Pavel Sevyarynets – for breaches of ethics, and suggested that his license be revoked.
The ministry also recommended the Bar Association investigate and take disciplinary measures against lawyers Tamara Sidarenka, Maryana Syameshka, Pavel Sapelka, and Uladzimir Tolstsik after they publicly stated that they were being prevented from effectively representing their clients, and voiced concern about their clients’ health, well-being, and poor detention conditions.
Licences of lawyers revoked
The Bar Association refused to comply with all of the ministry’s recommendations, but requested that the lawyers publicly revoke the statements that prompted the ministry’s requests. As Human Rights Watch researchers were told in some interviews, the authorities invoke vague language in the criminal procedure code that regulates obligations not to disclose certain confidential information in order to prevent the public from learning about poor detention conditions and other abuses endured by those in custody.
On February 14, 2011, the Ministry of Justice revoked the licences of lawyers Aleh Aheeu and Tamara Haraeva, Tatsyana Aheeva, and Uladzimir Tolstsik. The ministry alleged that Aheeu and Aheeva had, among other things, given incorrect information to its auditors and that Tolstsik and Haraeva had “violat[ed] … licensing legislation by refusing to provide legal assistance to Iryna Khalip,” a reporter for the Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta and wife of Andrey Sannikau.
On March 3, 201
1, the Minsk City Bar Association disbarred Sapelka (left) on the recommendation of the Ministry of Justice. The ministry’s website said that Sapelka’s expulsion was due to his alleged failure “to appear for investigative activities” and his failure “to provide defense counsel” to his clients. The action leaves Sapelka unable to practice law in Belarus.
According to Human Rights Centre “Viasna”, Sapelka was a defender of political prisoners for many years. He set up the defence for Mikola Autukhovich and members of ‘Partnership, a non-registered organisation for observers.
Family members harassed
Authorities also harassed family members of persons held on criminal charges. Some were summoned for ‘informal questioning’ by the security services, while others were banned from traveling abroad. Milana Mikhalevich, the wife of opposition leader Ales Mikhalevich who was released on February 19 on his own recognizance, told Human Rights Watch that she was stopped some 100 kilometers from Minsk and not allowed to leave the country because, officials told her, of the criminal investigation against her husband.
Being related to a suspect in a criminal investigation is not grounds for denying an individual the right to leave the country, nor was Milana Mikhalevich even declared a witness in an investigation.
In another instance, the mother of an opposition leader was arbitrarily detained for a day and her passport confiscated by authorities.
The wife of a man facing criminal charges who worked closely with an opposition leader recounted how she has been invited “for a talk” with security service officers. The officials implied they would allow her to visit her husband in detention if she agreed to “influence” him to cooperate with the investigation. She refused. Her husband remains in prison.
Related articles:
Post-election crackdown on independent media continues in Belarus
Belarus rejects dialog in the UN Human Rights Council
Lawyer’s dilemma: protect the law or a person
European Bars condemn the Belarusian ministry’s repressions on lawyers
Absurdity: lawyers punished for yielding to KGB pressure
“Justice” in Belarus: lawyers afraid to defend political prisoners
Belarusian lawyers need moral support amid government’s pressure
Foreign HR observers expelled from Belarus
Belarus: Political detainees facing years of prison
HR defenders demand inspection of KGB prison in Minsk on torture reports
