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On the first of March, a criminal case for tax evasion, against the chairman of the Belarusian Helsinki Committee (BHC), Tatiana Protko, was resumed. During the prosecution the last republican Human Rights association might be liquidated and BHC leaders are threatened with seven years of imprisonment with confiscation of property. (04-MARCH-06)

Open letter by the HFHR Board regarding “secret prisons” to the Chairman of the Council of Ministers (03-MAR-06)

The Norwegian Oil Fund has sold almost 70% of its shares in the French oil company Total. The Norwegian Burma Committee (NBC), which has been campaigning against the Fund’s investments in Total because of its contested activities in the military-ruled Asian country, is pleased. “This is very good news,” says Marte Graff Jenssen of NBC. (03-MAR-06)
 

The Polish Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights demands that the Polish government gives full openness to the Council of Europe. The human rights watchdog has been investigating claims of illegal detentions and transport of prisoners by the CIA on European territory. It considers the information received by Republic of Poland as “disappointing and inadequate”. (03-MAR-06)
 

For the Belarusian weekly Zhoda the publication of some of the infamous Mohammed caricatures may have dramatic consequences. Last week Belarusian prosecutors opened a criminal probe into the newspaper that is accused of having incited religious hatred by printing the cartoons. But according to Zhoda’s editor-in-chief the case is politically motivated. (01-MAR-06)
 

The government’s violent dispersal of a peaceful rally held by the “Azadlig” Election Bloc and other political powers on November 26, 2005 had serious resonance both in this country and in the international arena. Azerbaijan’s human rights organizations and well-known legal specialists decided to create a Public Investigation Commission, which held the careful investigation since November and released the report in the end of February.

Thursday February 23 Rafto Price laureate Lidija Yusupova visited the Human Rights House in Oslo to inform Norwegian civil society on the new NGO-law in the Russian Federation that will come into force April 10. One of the consequences of the law is that all financial transfers to Russian NGO´s in the future will have to be approved by the Russian authorities. “The new law will make it even more difficult for Russian NGO´s to do their work.” (28-FEB-06)
 

Thursday February 23 Rafto Price laureate Lidija Yusupova visited the Human Rights House in Oslo to inform Norwegian civil society on the new NGO-law in the Russian Federation that will come into force April 10. One of the consequences of the law is that all financial transfers to Russian NGO´s in the future will have to be approved by the Russian authorities. “The new law will make it even more difficult for Russian NGO´s to do their work.” (28-FEB-06)
 

The police have recorded 450 cases of election violence during this year’s election period, the police boss, Maj. Gen. Kale Kayihura, has said.He, however, hastened to add that the general security situation during the time was “quite good as acknowledged by all the commentators” in the country apart from a few isolated cases of voter intimidation and bribery. (27-FEB-06)