The HRC Viasna reported that on 14 July the Minsk district prosecutor office issued official warnings to Aksana and Aliaksandr Kalinkin, members of Belarusian Association of Journalists, for their work in a the Russian Federation based Christian TV station, Channel of Blessed News. The statement, signed by the Minsk district attorney Aliaksandr Arkhipau, stipulated: “From 2007 in Minsk and Minsk district journalists of the Russian TV channel CBN conducted illegal journalist activities without having an official accreditation with the MFA of Belarus. Their illegal activities were based out of a promotion unit TRC Angel-TV, which was not included in the state registrar of mass media.
In Arkhipau’s view, the Kalinkins violated article 35.4 of the Belarusian law on mass media, which prohibits professional journalist activities of foreign media without an MFA accreditation in Belarus.
However, Andrei Bastunets, a BAJ vice chair and lawyer, said that the sanction against the Kalinkins was not substantiated. Mr Bastunets explained that according to article 1 of the same law on mass media foreign journalists are “those who have active working agreements and are part of the foreign media staff.” Preparation of audio and visual materials as well as writing articles for foreign media is not prohibited by the legislation. Moreover, the similar right is guaranteed by the International Covenant on Civic and Political Rights, signed by Belarus.
HRC Viasna informs that journalists Aksana and Aliaksandr Kilinkin are planning to appeal issued warnings.
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One more BAJ member Ales Masiuk from Slonim (Hrodna region, West Belarus) received an official warning from the prosecutor office for organising the School of Young Journalists.
Prosecutors started to investigate the School in April 2009 after a social worker of the Slonim municipality education department Maksim Maslau visited classes. He said that reason for the investigtion was an increased distribution of illegal printed materials in Slonim.
BAJ informs that the local prosecutor office views Masiuk’s activities as violations for having classes with children without an official permission and in a building that does not meet ‘standards of sanitary and fire safety regulations.’
Mr Masiuk commented on accusations:
“My only violation is that I was teaching classes in a private apartment. But I several times addressed this question in the municipality, to give me a place for the School, but nobody paid attention [to requests].”
Mr Masiuk also added that he was not going to appeal since it was pointless. Classes in the Slonim School of Young Journalists will, most probably, be continued.
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HRC Viasna informs that an official warning issued by the Kleck (Minsk region) prosecutor to a founder and editor-in-chief of the independent publication Bojki Kleck/Feisty Kleck Siarhei Panamarou, who is also a member of the Belarusian Popular Front party, in early June was recently supported by the Minsk district attorney Aliaksandr Arkhipau. The document effectively banned to publish Bojki Kleck without an official registration.
Arkhipau made only one correction that the registration was needed not for the publication as such but rather for the editorial office. The Minsk district attorney referred to the law on mass media, which requires the editorial office be a legal entity.
However, a human rights defender and lawyer Raman Kisliak argued that Arkhipau’s arguments for banning the publication could only be used in cases of protecting the state security, civic order, health and morality of citizens or rights and freedoms of others. The Minsk district attorney did not specify the reasons for his decision.
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In addition to warning Belarusian journalists were receiving, there were cases of restricting access of information to the independent media.
The BAJ press-service reported that on 14 July a precinct police chief in Barysaŭ (Minsk region) Siarhei Hara despite a previous arrangement initiated by police itself refused to share information with Ales Mikalaichanka, a journalist of Borisovskije Novosti/Barysaŭ News. The snub came after ideologists of the local municipality did not sanction an interview with the independent newspaper. The refused information was suposed to contain a police address to private house owners to protect their property during a period of vacations.
In addition the Barysaŭ News office received a letter from the ideology department from the Minsk district municipality refusing their journalists an accreditation.
