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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)

Human Rights Center Viasna is gravely concerned with the violations of human rights that took place at Orsha penal colony. On 7 or 8 March Mikhail Marynich had insult there. According to our information, the prison guards refused to give medicines to him for four days. (22-MAR-2005)

The negative attitude of Belarusian authorities to free distribution of information is not a secret. The state tries to control mass media and demands from them to comply to the standards, invented by the officials. The new department that will control electronic mass media, was established at the Ministry of Justice. At the same time, an internet forum in Hrodna was closed because its users criticized the authorities.(22-MAR-2005)

The official Minsk reacted to the wave of protest against the introduction of the 18% tax with fines and arrests to the active participants of the actions. The repression campaign is nationwide and touches representatives of different regions of Republic of Belarus. (22-MAR-2005)

The meetings of businessmen against the 18% value added tax on the goods that are imported from the Russian Federation. This tax was introduced as a result of the agreement with the Russian Federation that was signed by Belarusian officials. (22-MAR-2005)

On 21 February Ms. Sakalouskaya, a judge of the Supreme Court, ruled to liquidate the public association Belarusian Women’s Movement Adradzhenne Aichyny (Homeland’s Revival).
On 25 February Mahiliou Regional Department of Justice warned the women’s public association Liubava in Horki. (1-MAR-2005)

At its sitting on 22 February the Council of the Union of Belarusian Writers rejected the ultimatum of the Presidential Office heads which had earlier requested that the organization leave most of the premises they now occupy in the House of Writers. The Presidential Office response runs as follows, “They are not being thrown out into the street, it´s just that they´ve been offered smaller premises than they currently occupy”. The Presidential Office requested that the Union of Writers occupy 10 times less area of the House of Writers than they do now: 58 square meters instead of 614. (1-MAR-2005)