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On 7 October the discussion “(Il)legal killing…” was held in Vilnius with the participation of the Belarusian human rights defenders, journalists and representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania. The discussion was organized by the the Barys Zvozskau Belarusian Human Rights House in partnership with the human rights organization Freedom House, and was one in a number of events within the Week against the death penalty in Belarus.

On 13 October, 2015 a press conference on the results of the presidential election, that is to take place in Belarus on 11 October 2015, will be held at the Barys Zvozskau Belarusian Human Rights House.

During the ninth working meeting of the OSCE Human Dimension Conference in Warsaw, on 25 September the problems of democratic institutions, including democratic elections, were raised. Uladzimir Labkovich (right), coordinator of the campaign “Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections”, presented the position of Belarusian human rights defenders on the current presidential election.

On 7 October 2015, at 16:00 the Barys Zvozskau Belarusian Human Rights House together with the Freedom House (Lithuania office) and the Museum of Genocide Victims in Vilnius will organize a discussion “(Il)legal Killing…”. The event will be held at the Museum of Genocide Victims (Auku g.2) within the framework of the Week against the Death Penalty, organized by the campaign “Human Rights Defenders against the Death Penalty in Belarus” from 5 to 10 October, and dedicated to the World Day against the Death Penalty.

Under item 6 of the 30th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, Human Rights House Foundation made a statement endorsed by a coalition of Belarusian human rights organizations. It was a clear call for Belarusian authorities to adhere to international human rights standards and cooperate with international human rights mechanisms.

Warsaw, 23 September 2015 – Human Rights House Network has highlighted the growing intimidation and persecution of human rights lawyers, and made the case for strengthening the protection they receive, in its report Human Rights Lawyers at Risk: Making the Case for Protection of Legal Professionals in Azerbaijan, Belarus, Moldova, Russia, and Ukraine.

Civil society has less and less space to breathe or even exist in many countries, let alone participate in public life. Authorities are using restrictions as a pretext to prosecute and imprison human rights defenders, criminalising the right to be a human rights defender, and the right to assemble and associate.

The politician and 2010 presidential election candidate Aliaksei (Ales) Mikhalevich returned to Belarus after more than four years of forced exile.

Criminalisation and repression of human rights defenders is not the right way forward for Europe. Watch the video of the panel debate here!