 | POLITICS | |
10 Days Arrest for Solidarity Action with NTV
11:11, 05/04/2001
Opposition activist Alexander Abramovich was sentenced by the Borisov district court to 10 days of arrest for the action of solidarity with the beleaguered Russian NTV channel, held yesterday in his native town. The picketers took to the central streets where they stayed for half an hour, after which police vehicles pulled up and delivered them to the police station. The rest of dissenters got milder sentences. 
11:10, 05/04/2001
Overnight April 4-5 there had been detained four ZUBR activists: Aleksei Shydlovsky, Timothy Dranchuk, Zmitser Drapochko and Ales Apranich. Near the graffiti "Where`s Zakharenko?", "Where`s Gonchar?", "Where`s Krasovsky?", "Where`s Zavadsky?", inscribed on the wall, the riot police officers, armed with automatic rifles, put them down on earth and got handcuffed. The incident occurred at half past one April 5 night.
11:09, 05/04/2001
Charter`97 have received information from a reliable source that the acting Foreign Minister of Costa Rica, whose name is Ms. White, received earlier this week deputy Belarusian ambassador Alexander Sychov, currently on a mission tour around Latin America and the Caribbean. Sychov asked Costa Rican FM for support of Belarus` request to uphold Belarus during the elections into the Security Council, and she declined. In her turn, FM White raised her deep concerns about grave human rights abuses in Belarus. Belarusians were taken completely aback by this her reaction and Sychov was absolutely unprepared to defend the government`s positions in this area.
11:08, 05/04/2001
On April 4 US Congressman Christopher H. Smith released on behalf of the Congress Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe a statement on the human rights situation in Belarus. Read below the full text of the statement:
11:07, 05/04/2001
Opposition activists Alexander Abramovich, Alesya Yasuk, Marina Statkevich, Ales Borodulya and Dmitry Fedorchenko went on a picket in Borisov, expressing their solidarity with the beleaguered NTV channel of Russia. The picket took place in the town`s central square under the motto "For your and our freedom!" and "Putin, do not turn Lukashenko-like!". Consequently, all dissenters were turned in to police.
11:06, 05/04/2001
On the eve of the day of Russia-Belarus merger Belarusian nationalists bumped into Russian fascists, who attempted to desecrate Belarusian national symbols. The incident took place on April 2 at the popular place of youth gatherings near McDonalds. RNE skinheads noticed the Freedom Party activists and started mocking at their badges with national emblems on. A few minutes later there started a fight and fascists took to the heels. Those who didn`t manage to flee were captured by riot police together with the FP youths and delivered to the police station. Afterwards, the participants of the fight were sent home, awaiting trial.
11:05, 05/04/2001
Although the order of psychological examination is common for all Belarusian nationals, regardless of the posts they occupy, there`s no practice of testing the mental condition of the high-ranking officials as such. Moreover, the disease, which psychiatrist Dmitry Schigelsky diagnosed Lukashenko with - mosaic psychosis - is considered by many as a behavioral norm, rather than some sort of a plague. "I`d call it a peculiarity of one`s personal character and behavior," - said head of the department of psychiatry Roman Evsegneev at the April 4 press-conference.
11:04, 05/04/2001
"We recommend that you cooperate more tightly with the "national assembly`s" deputies," - said the chair of the Constitutional Court of Belarus Grigory Vasilevich to the trade unionists, representing education and seeking official explanations as to who there employer is, so that he could be held responsible for delays in salary payments to teachers and underpayments likewise. The trade union representatives weren`t satisfied by the Constitutional Court`s response.
End of Humanitarian Aid from Germany
11:03, 05/04/2001
"Decree #8 passage will significantly cut down the German humanitarian aid flow to Belarus," - declared representatives of a range of German charity and religious organizations, who arrived to Belarus to commemorate the 15 th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster.
Belarus Officials Incite Anti-Jewish Hatred
11:02, 05/04/2001, NTV
"Department for humanitarian aid of the president`s administration applies double-standard policy against the Jewish religious association. Levying customs duties on religious items will provoke strong public scrutiny and will be considered by the Jewish believers as an attempt to hamper the religious practice during our great feast," - stressed chair of the board of directors of the charity mission of the Jewish religious association Vladimir Teplitsky after the customs officers levied taxes on a five-ton cargo of matzoth, delivered on the eve of the great Jewish religious feast Pesakh. The authorities considered it humanitarian load.
Belarus Turns into a Region of Suicides
11:01, 05/04/2001
According to the number of suicides per capita Belarus is becoming one of the high risk countries: in 1999 there occurred 28,7 suicide attempts per 100 thousand people, while in 2000 - already 30,6. In total, last year witnessed over 3 thousand suicides, said April 4 head of the department of prophylactics of the Ministry of Healthcare Alexander Tsybin at the press-conference, dedicated to the Universal day of psychological health, marked on April 7.
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