Chamber of representatives looks for extremists

Amendments to the law on extremism have been adopted in the first reading by the Belarusian “chamber of representatives” on November 16.

The draft law in particular brings Article 64 of the Criminal Code into line with the article of the law on extremism which determines committing a crime on political or ideological motives as aggravating circumstances. By the way, International Day for Tolerance is celebrated today all over the world in addition to the Day of Belarusian Solidarity. And Belarusian bureaucrats who like to call our nation “tolerant”, have adopted such a law…

The law includes a norm which bans in pre-election campaign materials, radio and TV speeches, newspaper articles of candidates with appeals to forcible take-over, creation of illegal armed formations, insult and slander on civil servants, candidates for presidency, deputies.

Laws on public associations and political parties will be completed with provisions which ban creation of political parties, public associations which set as their aim any extremist activities. Mass rallies which aim is any extremist activities, are forbidden.

Unregistered organizations or organizations which activities are suspended cannot be organizers of mass rallies.

According to the law, the Administrative Code will be completed with norms of administrative responsibility for dissemination, storing and production of extremist materials.

As we have informed, the law “On Counteraction to extremism” came into force on January 21, 2007. Before that the law had been persistently “lobbied” by the State Security Committee (KGB). It was passed in its initial form despite the “council of the republic” sent the draft law to the “chamber of representatives” for revision. The matter is that Alyaksandr Lukashenka personally ordered the two chambers to pass the law before January 1, 2007.

Human rights activists have immediately called the Law a legal basis for struggling with political opponents of the regime.

As said by the lawyer Valyantsin Stefanovich, through the adopted law “the authorities are carrying out a purposeful libeling of political parties and public associations, certain democratic groups which are trying to change the situation in a non-violent way, as extremists and extremism. At the same time, a legal base to bring to account people who propagate fascist and Nazi symbols, is absent in the law. And amendments won’t introduce anything new, they would just worsen the situation for the oppositional parties and politicians,” the human rights activist said.

“The definition of extremism in the law raises certain doubts in me, for instance. In addition to kindling enmity, the law contains references to organizing mass disorder and hooliganism on reasons of political and ideology enmity. Considering the case of Alyaksandr Kazulin, one should remind that his actions were classified as hooliganism. And other public events organized by opposition are classified as group actions violating public order. We know that Andrei Klimau, Mikola Statkevich and Paval Sevyarynets have been convicted for that. That is why there are no guarantees that mass peaceful rallies which would be accompanied by provocations of policemen, would not be classified as acts of extremism,” Valyantsin Stefanovich said.