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“Government officials and police are the worst violators of citizens’ rights. Chairmen of courts and mayors turn a blind eye to complaining people coming to see them. Moreover, there are problems with state registration of legal entities, including NGOs in the country. My appeals to the Justice Ministry over such complaints remain unattended for months”, said Ombudsman (Human Rights Commissioner) Elmira Suleymanova (photo) while presenting her annual report to the parliament.  (4-APR-2005)

The Debating Film Club „Human Rights in Film” is about to begin. The inaugural meeting will take place on 5 April at 6 p.m. at the head office of the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights. (02-APR-05)

A Parliamentary Assembly Round Table of the European Council took place in Strasburg on 23 of March. The list of the Council members was compiled by Andreas Gross, a member of the European Council from Switzerland and representatives of the Russian State Duma. They made the decision not to include any representatives of Aslan Maskhadov (Chechen separatist leader, who was killed earlier this month), who didn’t recognize the integrity of Russian Federation. Mr. Gross invited Akhmed Zakaev, (rebel envoy) to participate on the side of the separatists, but he refused. (02-APR-05)
 

Hundreds of people were brutally beaten by the riot squad in the Russian town Blagoveschensk in December. On Sunday, more than 10.000 demonstrators demanded retirement of the responsible and compensations for damages. The Moscow Helsinki Group and other NGOs support the demands and ask for the responsible to be brought to trial. (29-MAR-05)
 

Human Rights Center Viasna is extremely concerned with the intensification of repressions against representatives of democratic opposition during the last months. Well-known public and political activists of Republic of Belarus are put behind bolt and bar for the reasons that are invented or provoked by the authorities… (29-MAR-2005)

On 22 March Mikalai Statkevich was summonsed to the Investigative Committee of the Main Board of Internal Affairs of Minsk City Executive Committee, where he was told that he had been found suspected in the criminal case initiated for mass actions of protest staged against the referendum results. M.Statkevich had to provide a written undertaking not to leave the city. (29-MAR-2005)

In October 2003 the chair of the taxi agency Mikola Autukhovich has already held a hunger-strike to protest against illegal actions of the local authorities. That time he managed to defend his business. Now he and his drivers have to do it again. (29-MAR-2005)

Over the period of December 10-14, 2004 hundreds of people were subject to assault and torture. Residents of the small Bashkirian town Blagoveschensk and its surroundings, were taken from the streets, bars, discos and even their homes without any explanations and brought to the local police station. The police used their night-sticks and severely beat those who asked questions. After several hours in the police station, a lot of the fearful people were brought to the hospital. (29-MAR-05)
 

Human rights activists were shocked to discover that imans at some of Cairo’s leading mosques were preaching against two of their most prominent colleagues – and that the driving force behind these organised sermons of hate appeared to be an Egyptian government ministry. Leading human rights campaigners say imans’ attacks incite murder. Index on Censorship’s  Rohan Jayasekera reports. (25-MAR-05)