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Human Rights Center “Viasna” has already prepared “Preliminary monitoring on facts of tortures and other inhumane treatment of citizens of Belarus”, based on the principles of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. The English version of the report will be soon available at the “Viasna” site: www.spring96.org (16-NOV-04)
 

The 67-year-old pensioner from Vawkavysk Valiantsina Saldatava keeps hungering for the 19th day already. That’s how she protests against the falsification of the results of the election, persecution of the independent Mestnaya Gazeta and the inaction of the authorities in solution of the housing problems.

On 1 November Belarusian Association of Journalists addressed Information Minister Uladzimir Rusakevich with an open letter, requesting to cancel the order about suspension of the “Mestnaya Gazeta” newspaper. By that day the editor-in-chief of this independent newspaper had been on hunger strike for already 13 days. (4-NOV-2004)

62 filled referendum ballots were found in a garbage can in the city of Barysaw. The activist of the United Civil Party, former candidate to deputies in Barysaw village circuit Viktar Harbachow says that a member of his initiative group found them in the garbage can near secondary school #24 of Barysaw, where polling station #42 was situated. (4-NOV-2004)

On 28 September KGB decided to leave Mikhail Marynich in custody for 30 more days “for the interests of investigation. This will be the sixths month of jail for the ex-minister, who has been kept there since 26 April. (4-NOV-2004)

There are already three persons on hunger strike in the Republic of Belarus. All three cases are connected to the Parliamentary election. The first hunger strike was started by the chief editor of “Mestnaya Gazeta” newspaper Andrey Shantarovich. He believes the newspaper was suspended for political reasons so that it couldn’t elucidate the electoral process. (4-NOV-2004)

The 25 th of October five  persons were detained for participation in the demonstration against the falsification of the Parliamentary election and the referendum in Kastrychnitskaya Square. (26-10-04)
 

In the Republic of Belarus the use of the police force has a long history. In 1996 there took place the first violent beatings and detentions of opposition activists during Lukashenka´s rule. Since that time many thousand of people went through beatings, fines and imprisonments. Human rights organizations of Republic of Belarus always try to register such facts. The protest action of 19 October is one of the examples. (23-OCT-2004)
 

The first actiong of protest against the shameless falsification of the results of the election and the lawless referendum took place on 18 October. It was attended by numerous foreign observers and journalists. That´s why all the detainees were released. The detainees of the second protest action, 19 October, received huge fines or 3-15 days of jail. Nevertheless, the protest actions in Kastrychnitskaya square in the center of Minsk continue. (22-OCT-2004)