TIME TO CHOOSE! :: Charter'97 :: News

Some days ago a mission of PA OCSE visited Minsk. The deputies of the European parliament were interested in facts of human rights violations in Belarus. A human rights defending initiative Charter’97 provided relevant information on the three following issues: atmosphere of fear, freedom of expression and election process.

The creation of atmosphere of fear and terrorization of opponents have started from 1999, when the most probable candidates for the presidential position were moved away from the political arena – Gennady Karpenko, Yuri Zakharenko and Viktor Gonchar. Their abduction and a mysterious death of the Vice-Speaker were a shock for the opposition and the Establishment, it stopped the development of civil society in the country. This year new information on these political reprisals has emerged. It has awakened the society and urged it to react.

The Minister of Internal Affairs cynically stated that he does not discriminate between the cases of disappeared politicians and other thousands of cases of disappeared people. At the same time, a group of investigators of Zakharenko, Gonchar, Krasovsky and Zavadsky cases got into a dangerous situation. That was declared publicly by journalist Pavel Sheremet, who in a little while was detained in Moscow on the request of Belarusian authorities. All of a sudden two investigators from that group die of heart attacks. The two other investigators, for the fear of reprisal, left the country. Now the authorities are trying to conceal the truth about the disappeared, and brings up information about pseudo-disappearances, for example, about disappearance of the former Prosecutor General Oleg Bozhelko.

The second stone hung on the throat of the civil society by authorities are the imprisoned on charges that are politically motivated. Officially, of course, other charges are presented for public – such as economical crimes or hooliganism and so on. Let us name some of the imprisoned. Andrey Klimov, a deputy of the Supreme Soviet and an initiator of impeachment to the president; Valery Schukin, the Supreme Soviet deputy, ardent opposition journalist and human rights defender; Yuri Bandazhevsky, internationally recognized radiologist; Dmitry Obodovsky, the son of opposition adherent Sergey Obodovsky from Mogilyov; Alexandr Chigir, the son of this year presidential elections candidate. It was the revenge of authorities that had sent Andrey Klimov to prison for 7 years for an economical transgression, which, according to the law, should be punished by no more than a fine. His case wasn’t subject to the latest amnesty as the article under which he was condemned was excluded from the Amnesty law. And what a persecution of Valery Schukin! Valery Alekseevich, an aged man, is incessantly at the gunpoint of secret service. After every protest march he is detained with the use of violence and beaten. Now he is serving a three-month detention under conditions that does not allow him to receive victuals from his relatives. The utmost cynicism of the powers lies in pressure on families of opposition members, when children are imprisoned for their parents, like Obodovsky and Chigir sons.

Civil society is given forbidden blows from all sides. Police beats activists of opposition. Adherents of ZUBR organization Alexey Shidlovsky and Timofei Dranchuk were beaten at the Central police department, and Sergey Rimoshevsky and Larisa Nikolayuk – in the Moscow district police department for writing on walls “Where is Gonchar?” “Where is Zakharenko?”. A group of the members of Conservative Christian Party of the Belarusian Popular Front was beaten up by special service men in civilian clothes on Oktyabr’skaya Square in the day of All-Belarusian Assembly. Security service of the Minsk and Grodno universities has beaten students for information distribution. And the foulest incident occurred when the unknown youngsters under a command of an experienced instructor in a mask repeatedly punched and kicked two underage girls – Tatsiana and Marina Yasiuk, ZUBR members from Bobruisk. It happened more than once in our practice, that the authorities don’t want to show openly their inhuman attitude to the opponents, makes it with the help of Russian Nationalists or skinheads.

Arrests, detentions, fines, searches, exclusions of students from universities became familiar blows from the authorities in the direction of Belarusian civil society. Criminal cases are opened against activists of the youth organization ZUBR - Alexey Shidlovsky, Sergey Koktysh, Anatoly Alizar, Alexandr Ermakov. Vintsuk Vechyorka, a leader of Belarusian Popular Front, and young ZUBR Antom Telezhnikov have served 15-days sentence. Ten days were spent in jail by Alexandr Abramovich (ZUBR ), Dmitry Sheborenko ("Molodoy Front"), Sergey Pyanykh (United Civil Party), Dmitry Fedorchenko (ZUBR), Sergey Borovikov – opposition activist from Krichev; Ales’ Belyatsky, a head of the human rights defence center “Vesna”; Valery Sharbin (ZUBR). Sixteen protesters from ZUBR were sentenced to three days of administrative detention for their action “The Final Diagnosis”, together with Viktor Turovets, BPF activist from Grodno and Tadeush Gavin, a head of “Union of Poles” from Grodno. Many hundreds of protesters from opposition where detained for more than three hours “for identification” ater protest marches. Alexandr Abramovich and Oleg Meteliza (ZUBR), Vladimir Starchenko and Alesya Katsapova (BPF supporters from Gomel), Vadim Pleshchenko (Conservative Christian Party, Vitebsk), Liudmila Gryaznova, Elina Novik, Maxim Kuksa, Mikhail Voloshko – members of the protest rally on Freedom Day in Minsk. A public action of intimidation against Anatoly Lebedko, a head of the United Civil Party, took place. Leaflets of the Belarusian Popular Front were confiscated. There are cases of expelling students from universities for their political activities.

During the period of election campaign the authorities try to choke the civil society, limiting the freedom of expression with the different tricks. Common people, the electorate can find just positive information about only one candidate – A.Lukashenko - in state-controlled mass media. Journalists show him all the time and tell about him only. If other candidates are ever mentioned, they are mentioned in a very negative context. Several times Belarus was deliberately cut off Russian TV channels – the most important source of information for Belarusian viewers – to restrict the influence of independent information on public opinion of the country. It is enough to receive any coverage in Russian TV programmes, and the popularity of the candidate to grows rapidly, as well as one’s chances for success. The authorities doesn’t want to allow it.

Alongside with the attacks on television, there are attempts to sew up the mouth of Belarusian independent newspapers. The editors are heavily fined, editorial offices are searched, newspapers’ publications are banned, the editions of newspapers are arrested, fiscal organizations are stirred up against mass media, some newspapers are reprimanded (after three reprimands the newspaper is closed). The authorities exercise pressure on journalists. Alexandr Starikevich and Sergey Anisko were summoned to KGB. Yury Svirko got reprimand. Anisko’s property was confiscated. Activists who spread special issues of newspapers, mostly ZUBR youth initiative members, are regularly detained by police.

Beside suppression of the right for freedom of expression inside the country there are attempts to hold back external sources of information. Experts in the sphere of mass media are not permitted to come into the country – Freimut Duve, an OSCE representative, and an international human rights defending organization “Article-19”. Moreover, A.Lukashenko repeatedly makes threats of reprisal after election to the opponents.

The most mass attacks in the latest six month were made on those who is closely connected to the election campaign– on candidates from opposition, election observers, people who hold highest posts in economy and administration, election committees, on mission of AMG OSCE and on voters themselves. In the beginning of the year threats were made to Vassily Leonov, who is taking an active part in the campaign on the side of opposition. Chigir’s son is imprisoned in a pre-trial detention center for his father. Pavel Kozlovsky was summoned to the prosecutor’s office for interrogation. Semyon Domash is reminded of his notorious private house. All the democratic candidates are hindered in their wish to meet electors. People who help to organize such meetings later are fired from work and go to court. Not long ago the authorities invented a decree about declarations of income for the candidates on presidential post. Not only candidates themselves, but also their grandchildren and grandparents are to declare their possessions!

A squall of blame rained down on a few thousands of independent observers from non-governmental organizations and democratic parties. They are libeled terrorists, while the majority of them are elderly ladies after 50. And not only court journalists, but also KGB chief and the president himself take liberties to use such expressions.

In order to force the establishment and authorities of all levels to support the existing president and not to make any unexpected steps, it is threatened. Information that the life of Ivan Titenkov, the former head of the President administration, and lives of his family members are in danger is not accidental. It’s a warning sign for the entire establishment – if you won’t behave well, you may get in the same situation.

The results of the elections in our state of affairs can be defined by a famous Stalin phrase: “No matter how they vote, it matters how the votes are counted». Belarusian authorities follow this principle. In 168 election committees, which include 2179 people, no representatives of democratic parties or non-governmental organizations. Lists of democratic representatives who meant to enter election committees, were intercepted by the authorities, and that made it possible not to let in anybody who us not loyal to the president.

Even by the newspaper headlines one can judge what a pressure the OSCE mission and its leader Hans-Georg Wieck, in spite of all his tactfulness, experience in Minsk now. The mission is accused of instruction of the terrorists -- meaning election observers. The president of the Central Election Committee Lidya Ermoshina doesn’t want to meet ambassador Wieck, which is done for effect. Hans-Georg Wieck is presented as a person of non-grata in press and menaced by deportation.

Poor voters, they also had their share! On their heads, which are often not educated enough, such a quantity of dirty water is slopped, that it’s a wonder how they are still watching Belarusian TV. They are menaced by NATO bombardment, by the “Yugoslavia variant”, by Western spies. Against this background of these monsters A.Lukashenko seems the only candidate that can serve a guarantor of stability and peace, and the sick in hospitals and workers on the plants are forced to sign for him.

In such a way – by creation of atmosphere of fear, with the help of population intimidation, limitation of freedom of expression and pressure on all the participants of the election process – the authorities act in the period of this election marathon. The growing civil society, its numerous organizations and several parties, its independent mass media, opposition candidates for presidential position and their teams, are suffering from mean and forbidden blows, are entangles in invisible ties of fear, they are beaten up in the sly at night. Civil society’s mouth is being gagged; its eyes and ears are being closed. And in such conditions the authorities are arranging to hold free, transparent and fair elections and to proclaim the before-planned result as a free, transparent and fair choice of the Belarusian people.

In spite of all these breaches of human rights and intimidation of the people, civil society acts and continues fight for better life. Youth movement has intensified rapidly, not only in Minsk, but also in all large and small towns of the country. Special issues of oppositional newspapers, leaflets and stickers are distributed in unheard-of quantities. And those who are carrying it out are not afraid of any repressions. The youth feels the encouragement of the people and the common general desire to change the situation in the country. Now it’s time to choose!