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Today, 13th December, marks the 25th anniversary of the instatement of martial law. Meetings, conferences and exhibitions are taking place in different cities throughout Republic of Poland, reminding people of the events of December 1981. (13-DEC-06)

The opening of the exhibition of photography by Olivier Toscani, entitled “Thought is forbidden: the face of repression in Cuba”, will take place on 9 December 2006 at 7.30 p.m. at the club M25 located at 25 Miñska Street in Warsaw. Its organizers are the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, the organization Hands Off Cain and the club M25. (9-DEC-06)

Another lecture dedicated to the memory of Marek Nowicki took place on 1 December 2006 at Warsaw University. It was entitled “Reflections on the French Declaration of Rights from 1789 – today” delivered by Professor Jon Elster. (02-DEC-06)

On 16 – 17 November, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance organized an expert seminar devoted to the exchange of views on the topic of: combating racism (hate speech) while respecting freedom of expression. Halina Bortnowska participated in the seminar as the representative of the informal group “Viridarium”, operating alongside the HFHR. (24-NOV-06)

A seminar devoted to the observation (monitoring) of court hearings was held on 10 November 2006 within the confines of the program: “Court monitoring as a method for activation of students of law and economics in the Republic of Poland and other Central-Eastern European and former CIS countries”. Leaders of nongovernmental organizations from Slovakia, Bulgaria, Moldova, the Ukraine and Romania were the seminar’s participants. (11-NOV-06)

Two events directed against the Ukrainian minority in the Republic of Poland took place at the end of October. They caused alarm within the Ukrainian community. The expert Dorota Hall (right) from the Helsinki Foundation, says “that the situation is serious and arouses concern”. However, she awaitens the response from the authorities before passing judgments regarding the deterioration of the situation surrounding the Ukrainian minority in the Republic of Poland. (03-NOV-06)
 

On 4 October 2006, Viridarium – the action group against anti-Semitism and xenophobia – began a new series of meetings intended to recognize diversity, reinforce dialogue and consolidate remembrance and knowledge about others. (20-OCT-06)

The Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights has sent the letter to the Ambassador of the Russian Federation in the Republic of Poland encouraging a full and prompt investigation of the circumstances surrounding the death of Anna Politkovskaya as well as punishment of not only the perpetrators but also those standing behind them. (13-OCT-06)
 

A joint project of three Polish non-governmental organizations was launched on 4 October entitled “Civil Monitoring of Candidates for Judges”. The program’s objective is to enable the civil society’s participation in a debate regarding candidates for the positions of judges at courts and tribunals of the highest instance. (06-OCT-06)