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After death had found him on 11 March 2006 in his detention cell in The Hague, Slobodan Milosevic (right), the former president of Serbia and the Socialist Republic of Yugoslavia was buried in his hometown of Pozarevac on 18 March 2006. Reactions from the region to the death of Slobodan Milosevic varied. While some expressed frustration and regrets that the main player and the mind behind crimes had not lived to be punished by the Tribunal, which led to another case of justice not done, others glorified the personality of Slobodan Milosevic. (21-MAR-06)
 

Monday night and Tuesday morning at least 108 persons were arrested in Minsk. Andrei Dynko, right, the Editor-in-chief of ´Nasha Niva´, was detained at 10 am. He was arrested while getting off a bus at the Kastrychnitskaya Square, where several hundred people had set up tents and protested against the unfair presidential elections. (21-MARCH-06)
 

From the 22 February to the 2 of April an exhibition “Political ‘Justice’ and Political Prisoners in Contemporary Russia” takes place in the museum and Public Center of Andrey Sakharov.  The personages of the exhibition are people, who have fallen a prey to the politically motivated state despotism. The organizers of the exhibition believe that the existence of political prisoners and prisoners of conscience in the country is a menacing sign of present civil disaster. (20-MAR-06)
 

–  The Belarusian presidential election on 19 March failed to meet OSCE commitments for democratic elections, despite the fact that voters were offered the potential for a genuine choice between four candidates. Arbitrary use of state power and widespread detentions showed a disregard for the basic rights of freedom of assembly, association and expression,  concludes the OSCE Election Observation Mission in a statement issued today. (20-MARCH-06)
 
 

On 8 March the US Department of State published a report concerning the observance of human rights in the Republic of Poland in 2005. According to this report Republic of Poland is a country in which civil rights are generally being observed, there are however certain areas, in which violations do occur. (17-MAR-06)

The Norwegian Helsinki Committee has released its annual report on the Norwegian human rights situation. -The worst violations in 2005 happened in relation to the handling of refugee cases. Once again, Norway does not act in accordance with UNHCR’s recommendations. -We are particularly concerned about the consequences for the Chechen refugees that are being returned to the Russian Federation, says deputy Secretary General Gunnar M. Karlsen, right. (17-MAR-06)
 

Russian PEN has become the latest victim of Putin´s campaign against free speech. Free speech defenders at Russian PEN Centre have been hit with an order freezing their organisation´s assets and threatening the group´s future ¨C a step widely seen as both unjust and probably politically motivated. The order came after allegations that the organization has failed to pay land tax. The charges come at the height of an apparent crackdown on Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in the Russian Federation, particularly those with an international dimension. (17-MAR-06)
 

Index on Censorship has announced the shortlists for its annual Freedom of Expression Awards in London on 22 March 2006, honouring journalists, writers, lawyers, campaigners, filmmakers and whistleblowers who have made a significant contribution to free expression over the past year The awards, in their sixth year, will be presented at a special reception hosted by Anna Ford and sponsored by Bloomberg LP. (16-MAR-06)
 

The Belarusian Association of Journalists expresses solidarity and support to all its colleagues, including the foreign ones, who have met difficulties with access to information in the Republic of Belarus and are facing restrictions of their professional activity.(16-MARCH-06)