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In an unexpected move, President Alexander Lukashenko released the Belarusian human rights defender Ales Bialiatski. Ales Bialiatski called his wife and said that he was going to Minsk by train. He spent 2 years 10 months and 17 days in prison

On 17 June it was 2 years since the untimely death of Barys Zvozskau, the prominent Belarusian human rights defender, who passed away after a serious and long illness.

On 2-3 June 2014 Vilnius hosted conference “Lawyers: Human Rights Protection and Professional Security Guarantees”. The participants of the conference discussed issues of lawyers’ work in the field of human rights protection and guarantees that ensure working conditions for lawyers.

On 2-3 June 2014 the graduates of the “International Law in Advocacy. Electronic Human Rights Education for Lawyers” project will participate in the conference dedicated to the analysis of conditions and guarantees of realization of professional advocacy activities in Vilnius.

On 2-3 June 2014, an international conference “Lawyers: Human Rights Protection and Professional Security Guarantees” will be held for lawyers and legal professionals from Azerbaijan, Belarus, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine in Vilnius, Lithuania. Participants of the conference are the graduates of the Human Rights House Network project “International Law in Advocacy. Electronic Human Rights Education for Lawyers”, as well as experts from bar associations from Europe and the USA.

In the run-up to the 2014 Ice Hockey World Championship, which was held on 9-25 May in Minsk, the regime of president Lukashenka took ruthless action against the political opposition in Belarus. About 40 people have been arrested and sentenced to between 5 and 25 days in prison: thus, the Belarusian authorities attempted to round up all those prepared to raise their voices against the appalling state of human rights in Belarus, during this ice hockey world championship.

There are billboards installed on the entrance to Belarus from Poland to remind of Belarusian political prisoners. At the same time it is dangerous to remind of political prisoners in Belarus itself – Robert Hårdh (right), the head of Sweden’s Civil Rights Defenders human rights group was detained at the entrance to Čyžouka Arena, the place where the hockey game were held, for a special jersey with the Ales Bialiatski’s name on it.

Ice Hockey World Championship is to be held from 9 to 25 May 2014 in Minsk. On this occasion, representatives of international and national human rights organizations launched several campaigns to draw attention to the human rights situation in Belarus. Belarusian authorities, in their turn, have begun preventive detentions and banned Swedish human rights defender from entering the country.

Human rights organisations appeal to the governments of the countries participating in the 2014 World Ice Hokey Championship to be held in Minsk: refrain from sending official government delegations to participate in the events related to the Championship.