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On 17 March Belarusian HRH hosted a documentary screening dedicated to Yana Paliakova, a human rights defender. One year ago she took her own life. Besides showing the tragic story of young woman’s suicide the film author asked a broader question as to who the Belarusian HR defenders were and what kind of problems they encountered working in the Republic of Belarus.

Council of Europe and EU opinions about abolishing the death penalty in the Republic of Belarus will not be determinative in a decision making process. Mikalai Samaseika, a chair of the Parliament working group on the death penalty, stated this on 3 March in Minsk. At the same time changes in the official death penalty rhetoric are apparent.

If you want to effectively use the power of the web, if you want to launch an information campaign, if you want to effectively say what you want to say online, if you want to learn from the experience of others, watch this film! (a blogger from the Philippines)

On 4 March in Vilnius HRH Belarusian human rights defenders presented their vision of the human rights situation in contemporary Republic of Belarus. Fitted into ten written pages it will be included into Universal Periodic Review, which Republic of Belarus as a UN member has to go through in May this year. Representatives of embassies, journalists and everyone interested had a chance to hear out Belarusians.

Belarusian Human Rights House and JuBIC are hosting a screening of a new documentary by Volha Nikalaichyk, followed by a discussion with the film director. “Murder at the Dawn of Spring” (2010) recalls a suicide committed by human rights defender Yana Paliakova on 7 March 2009 in Salihorsk, Republic of Belarus.

New Life, a protestant congregation, was fined 272 millions BYR (almost 100,000 USD) by a court. Charges of alleged nature pollution were brought forward by the Minsk municipality environmental protection department. Church members were certain that a huge fine was yet another attempt to pressure the protestant community. The church had been in a stand off with the authorities for more than 7 years.

“Electronic Human Rights Education for Lawyers” program has been started by a seminar in the Belarusian Human Rights House (HRH) in exile in Vilnius on 19-21 February. The kick-off event aimed at letting 26 Belarusian participants know each other and providing basic skills of learning human rights via distance program they are about to go through during one year to come.

On 4 March 2010, the Belarusian Human Rights House will host the presentation of a report on the current human rights situation in the Republic of Belarus. The report was prepared by the Belarusian human rights defenders for the United Nations Universal Periodic Review.

On 19 February several HR organisations sent a letter to Belarusian law enforcement agencies with a dialogue proposition. They offered to discuss freedom of assembly and security measures during mass demonstrations especially what concerns creating legal and other obstacles for mass media covering these events.