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Letters from Lukashenka’s Prisoners: Artsiom Mitsuk
Artsiom Mitsuk was part of a Telegram group chat which included a number of pseudonymous members. On 29 September, some of the members agreed to meet in person. Artsiom arrived late and saw a number of representatives of law enforcement agencies but as he was sure he had not broken any laws, he checked in with the group chat to find out what was happening. However, on the group chat, Artsiom noticed a representative of state authorities was sending messages to the other users. Soon after that Artsiom was arrested.
Crimea & the renewed Russian invasion of Ukraine: New Human Rights Challenges – Crimea Platform Side Event
On 24 October 2022, Human Rights House Foundation co-organised a side event ahead of the start of the First Parliamentary Summit of the International Crimea Platform. The event focused on the deteriorating human rights situation in occupied Crimea following the launch of renewed Russian aggression against Ukraine in February 2022.
HRC51: Statement on human rights in Georgia
On 6 October 2022, Human Rights House Foundation delivered a statement at the 51st session of the UN Human Rights Council on the human rights situation in Georgia.
PACE Side Event: Crimea in darkness
On 10 October 2022, Human Rights House Foundation and several Ukrainian partners co-hosted a side event at PACE, aimed at Refocusing international attention on grave human rights violations in the occupied peninsula after the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Letters from Lukashenka’s Prisoners: Dzianis Boltuts
Dzianis Boltuts, an anti-fascist and fan of the MTZ-RIPO football club, was detained on 25 September 2020 as a suspect in a rioting case – public gatherings against the Lukashenka regime are oftentimes described as a “riot”. He was later charged under Art. 342 of the Criminal Code, “group actions that grossly violate public order”. At the start of 2021, Boltuts was also charged under Part 2 of Art. 293 of the Criminal Code (participation in riots) and under Art. 364 of the Criminal Code (violence or threat of violence against a police officer). A day after his birthday, Dzianis was sentenced to six years in a medium-security penal colony.
Crimea in the shadow – Warsaw Human Dimension Conference Side Event
On 28 September 2022, Human Rights House Foundation and several Ukrainian and international civil society organisations co-hosted “Crimea in the shadow”, a side event at the Warsaw Human Dimension Conference.
Statement on fundamental freedoms – Warsaw Human Dimension Conference
On 28 September 2022, at the Warsaw Human Dimension Conference, Human Rights House Foundation delivered a statement on the rise of attacks against human rights defenders in the OSCE region.
Statement on Ill Democracies – Warsaw Human Dimension Conference
On 27 September 2022, at the Warsaw Human Dimension Conference, Human Rights House Foundation delivered a statement on the rise of Ill Democracies in the OSCE region and what effect it might have on the protection of human rights defenders.
Belarus: Tatsiana Lasitsa released
On 24 September, Viasna volunteer Tatsiana Lasitsa was released in Belarus after serving one year and eight months of a two-and-a-half-year sentence. While we welcome this news, we highlight that Lasitsa not have been in prison in the first place – the case against her was a reprisal for her legitimate human rights work. We repeat our call for the release of her Viasna colleagues and for the release of all political prisoners in Belarus.