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Anxiety has grown about the commencement of the trials of three high-profile war crimes indictees from the former military junta, the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC), which seized power in a coup in 1997. The three, Tamba Alex Brima (alias Gullit), Santigie Kanu (aka Brigadier Five Five) and Ibrahim Bazzy Kamara, have spent more than a year in the custody of the war crimes court, waiting for a trial chamber to be set up before their prosecution commences. (18-JAN-05)
 

The African National Congress of South Africa (ANC) says Zimbabwe?s main opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) must be allowed to hold public meetings if this year?s parliamentary elections are to be declared free and fair. ANC secretary-general, Kgalema Motlanthe told journalists after the party?s national executive committee meeting that he was worried that the MDC still required permission from the police to hold public meetings. (18-JAN-05)
  

An estimated one million Rwandans, an eighth of the population, are expected to be tried in traditional “gacaca” village courts for alleged participation in the 1994 genocide. Domitilla Mukantaganzwa, Executive Secretary of the National Service of Gacaca Jurisdictions, said that trials in some areas might start next month, with proceedings beginning in the rest of the country in 2006. (18-JAN-05)
 

British playwright Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti has broken her silence to speak about the violent protests against her play Behzti, which caused outrage for its depiction of rape and murder in a Sikh temple. Index on Censorship reports (17-JAN-05)
 

Except of some previous irregularities occuring again, second round of the presidential elections, held on January 16th, was conducted in a democratic atmosphere according to the electional law. Although GONG?s preliminary overall assesment of the second round of the elections is positive, irregularities with the voters lists and serious violations of electional silence were registered again. (JAN-17-05)
 

INTACT (International Action Against Female Genital Mutilation), a German group active in Benin and other African countries, has declared that 2005 will be a year in which past successes in the fight against mutilation are celebrated and efforts to eradicate it will continue with renewed vigour. (17-JAN-05)
  

Hrodna Prosecutor’s Office officially warned the head of Minsk Regional organization of United Civil Party Maryna Bahdanovich. The reason was her radio speech as a candidate to the Parliament at Hrodna regional radio, in which the prosecutor´s office allegedly found insults to Aliaksandr Lukashenka. (16-JAN-2005)
 

On 2 December Homel Chyhunachny Borough Court started the open trial about which the correspondent of Narodnaya Volia newspaper Iryna Makavetskaya wanted to report. In the beginning of the trial the head of the court Tatsiana Adrybets ordered Makavetskaya to leave the court hall. The journalist refused to do it. Then Adrybets called the police who took Makavetskaya to Homel Chyhunachny Borough Board of Internal Affairs and composed a protocol of violation of article 166 of the Code of Administrative Violations (disrespect to court, up to 15 days of jail as punishment). At present, Makavetskaya is tried.  (16-JAN-2005)

The first session of the XXIV Human Rights School, organized by the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, took place on 7-9 January. Its participants represent various environments, including teachers, police officers, civil workers, clerics, non-government organization activists. There are still 8 sessions ahead of them and an examination in June. (14-JAN-05)