WHO STOLE THE ELECTIONS? :: Charter'97 :: News

Almost two centuries from today Alexander Pushkin wrote the verse about a strongman, lying under the willow: “only his hawk, his black horse and his young wife know who killed him and why.” Many years have passed and the story repeated on the Belarusian soil. Again the wives of the disappeared and deceased – Ludmila Karpenko, Olga Zakharenko, Zinaida Gonchar, Irina Krasovskaya and Svetlana Zavadskaya – are still waiting for the return of their loved ones, whom they hope to see alive. Over the second half of September and October the mass media managed to report the following about mass killings:

According to the German Foreign Ministry database, nothing is known about Yuri Zakharenko’s alleged whereabouts on German territory. They’ve no idea whether the man is there and all right. Despite the efforts of the Swiss reporter Rainer Hafercamp, not a single German newspaper agreed to publish his false data about Zakharenko’s staying on German territory. According to the influential German journalist Markus Wener such information is nothing but a provocative statement, concocted in Belarus.

Former procuracy investigator Oleg Sluchek revealed the “ideal murder” scheme, worked out by the law-enforcement chiefs and first applied against the mafia leaders. The first ones to fall pray to it were gangsters “Schavlik” and “Mamontenok”. A lot can be derived from Lukashenko’s words, voiced by him on October 30: “There was a situation when they misbehaved. Do you remember all those “Schavliks” and the like? Where are they, tell me?” Mikhail Medvedev, chair of the police committee for combating organized criminality and corruption said that “Schavlik” – whose real name is Vladimir Klesch, disappeared without trace.

Andrei Zhernosek, who disclosed this spring together with a KGB agent Gennady Uglyanitsa sensational data about the mechanism of an ideal murder through the “death squad” (SOBR), told in October the address of one of the witnesses on Gonchar-Krasovsky disappearance case.

Former head of the Minsk pre-trial jail Oleg Alkaev answered Lukashenko’s question: “Where are they buried?” with words “I promise to show you where they’re buried. But I have no authority, so how can they let me show? To do that I need the power of the prosecutor general. Then I will show everything – where everyone is buried, by whom and when.”

As for the execution gun, Oleg Alkaev believes that “professional and reliable pistols with silencers aren’t so plenty. If they buy weaponry from criminals, it can go unnoticed. Police keeps record of all guns in a special book on used weapons. However, my key version is this – they used the execution gun in order to produce an illusion of carrying out a real death penalty. You know, it’s as if they wanted to remove blood from their hands before God. And that’s what they did. The executors had no clue what they were doing. They were ordered and they obeyed. Afterwards they even took pride in the fact, for they were awarded with orders later.”

Iceberg

Political murders, ill-treatment of citizens by the authorities, denial of transparent and fair trial is something all Belarusians are suffering from. However, violations, associated with the inviolability of personality are like an iceberg. Its top, the facts which are known to the public, can’t be compared in size with the part which remains underwater.

Owing to the independent media and opposition organizations the world knows about Andrei Klimov – Supreme Soviet deputy convicted for his political activities. Mikhail Chigir is denied the right to protect his son Alexander, who’s been staying in pre-trial detention for over nine months now. Mikhail Chigir criticized the lack of fair trial in the country after the Minsk city court declined his family’s petition to sue the Belarusian television over slandering them. Trial over Tamara Vinnikova’s son Sergei, sentenced to 2 years of labor for illicit drug sales, was declared confidential. Judge Simonov, in charge of Dmitry Zavadsky’s case, said that the process will be closed and called on everybody to finish considerations as quick as possible. A right to protect the interests of Svetlana Zavadskaya was denied to Andrei Bastunets, a BAJ attorney. Belarusian Supreme Court refused to consider BHC complaint over the non-recognition of presidential elections outcomes as legitimate. Prosecutors of Gomel region overlook the legislation violations, laid out in more than 100 petitions. There started trial proceedings over the law-enforcers from the Pervomaisky district police station of Minsk, held accountable for beatings, extortions and illegal use of arms.

Repression machine

Following the September 9 elections the political harassment machine – detentions, fines, reprimands and arrests – didn’t come to a halt. Police captured activists of the Vitebsk wing of the International Association, named after G.Karpenko for holding a picket “Want to know truth!”, all participants of the Youth Front action, dedicated to the Minsk underground fighters, Mozyr BPF activists Dmitry Bukatov and Alexei Gamayunov for their involvement in the political art performance “Bomzhinki-2001”, leader of the Vitebsk branch of the Youth Front Viktor Shlyakhtin and six of his men for the picket of protest against the sale of Minsk car factory to the Russian tycoon, 20 YF rally participants, protesting against spreading fascism in Belarus, activists of the World Association of Belarusian Jews Yakov Gutman and Vladimir Rubinchik for the action against the destruction of the former synagogue building. Police summoned for interrogation chair of the Free trade union of Minsk tractor plant Vyacheslav Kozel upon suspicion of initiating the protest.

Reprimands were issued to the chair of the Baranovichi BPF branch Ales Pikul and member of the Social Democratic Party “Narodnaya Gromada” Leonid Trukhanovich for their part in the action “The Chain of Those Who Care”, Borisov ZUBRs Ekaterina Dedko and Dmitry Vishnevsky for raising portraits of the missing ones, Mogilev leader of the youth association “Pakhodnya” Sergei Girkin for his involvement in the action “Want to know truth”, BHC activist Aleksei Soroka for engaging in the protest against the persecution of the independent weekly periodical “Belarusskiye Naviny”, residents of Bobruisk Yanina Ovsyanik, Eva Ustimchuk and Lubov Sankovich for the hunger-strike, through which the ladies sought to demonstrate their right for a home and a job.

Among those fined were Vladimir Romanovsky, UCP activist, for his involvement in the April 25 action in Minsk, coordinator of the “Independent Observation” from Minsk Aleksei Galich, chair of the Mogilev city UCP affiliate Vladimir Gaidukov for an action “Want to know truth”, leader of Molodechno ZUBRs Andrei Osmolovsky, Vitebsk entrepreneur Vasily Ignatenko for “Choose!” campaign, adolescent Brest resident Ales Levchuk for disseminating a brochure “The Constitution of Belobryssiya”, leader of the Molodechno BHC branch Eduard Balanchuk for a white-red-white flag, regional coordinator of the “Independent Monitoring” from village Sharkovschina Vasily Gramovich.

Sentenced to 3 – 15 days of arrest were an independent observer from Klimovichi Vasily Vasilchenko, coordinator of the “Independent Observation” from the Belynichi district Oleg Metelitsa, Youth Front leader Pavel Severinets for a picket against the sale of the Minsk car factory to the Russian company, a woman from Brest Galina Panasuk for the distribution of the “Nasha Svaboda” special issue.

Legal action was opened against the Belynichi coordinator of the “Independent Observation” Oleg Metelitsa for keeping ZUBR stickers, which they found during the search, claiming them to be an insult of A. Lukashenko’s honor and dignity, against activists from the Mogilev office of Vladimir Goncharik Viktor Yasukevich and Tamara Levskaya for alleged beating the police major Ladisov, staffers of the newspaper “Volny Gorod” Sergei Nerovny, Vadim Stefanenko and Nikolai Motorenko for alleged resistance to law-enforcers, former leader of the Free trade union of the Minsk car factory Mikhail Marinich, charged with stealing the trade union fees.

“Soft” tools

In some cases the authorities use instead of a judicial machine “soft” economic instruments. For instance, they fired from job a social teacher of the school #1 Vladimir Olekhnovich for his agitation activities in Krupky. They also sacked coordinator of the “Independent Observation” from Molodechno Nelly Shloida, who was a director of the local drug store. They unleashed repression against the BHC representative, the doctor of the Beresino sanatorium Tamara Kot. They fired a postman from the Loevsky district Valery Konoplyanik for his involvement in the “Independent Observation”. Lost his monthly income the editor of the local radio Gennady Martynov for wearing a T-shirt “Let’s say no to a fool” and spreading such shirts among his fellows. They hinder the work and sue the head of the Soligorsk educational trade union Alexander Talpek for his involvement in the election campaign. They dismissed from post chair of the Grodno city hall Anatoly Pashkevich for poor voting results during the presidential ballot. Managers of some Brest companies are subject to pressure for their failure to ensure Lukashenko’s victory at their polling stations. One of them – deputy director of the “Tsvetotron” company Nikolai Koretsky – even requested medical assistance. A few days ago they forced to file in resignation a popular Belarusian artist Zinaida Bondarenko (employed at Finberg’s State concert orchestra) for her support of opposition election campaign. This incident is very characteristic of the regime, which feared not to manifest to all that there exists a ban on profession in Belarus. The first people to fall pray to it were most of the Supreme Soviet MPs, who signed an impeachment to the president.

Tough fists

“Soft” economic tools of influencing the disagreeing folks are added by the more harsh measures. They beat up the editor of the unregistered newspaper “Shklov news” Alexander Scherbak. In the last issue of his newspaper he seriously criticized the head of the local executive Alexander Ageev. Three strangers beat Leonid Mindlin, an author of documentaries about contemporary Belarus. Just like Scherbak, the attackers used some solid object to hit Mindlin and even broke his ribs. Mobs beat up the Bobruisk observers Dmitry Baryshnikov and Oleg Butsanets when they inquired from the house tenants whether they would engage in September 9 voting. In Rogachev they brutally ill-treated the leader of the local ZUBR branch Dmitry Shkulkov, who was hospitalized after the incident. Poet and singer Valery Pozdnyakevich was beaten up by police for speaking Belarusian. Once again the authorities targeted the Chigirs through burgling their countryside cottage. They also attacked the Catholic church – priests’ houses and temples are frequently burgled in the Grodno region.

Over the last month there occurred new attacks on public organizations and independent media. Sergei Atroshchenko, an owner of 60% bonds of the newspaper “Svobodnye Novosti”, decided to halt the publishing of the weekly periodical. His decision was upheld by the State Committee for Press. For now the passions around the paper cooled off and it keeps seeing light again. “Brest Courier” also received a reprimand from the State Committee for Press, while the newspaper “Pagonya” was warned by the regional procuracy. They confiscated from “Pagonya” a few computers and full print runs of two newspaper issues. They likewise seized from the independent newspaper “Kutseina” from Orsha four PCs and a printing machine.

The Ministry of Justice annulled the registration certificate of the “Association of the Belarusian students”. Despite the cessation of investigation proceedings against the Gomel association “Civil initiatives” and youth center “Gart”, KGB doesn’t return the equipment, which it confiscated from them a while ago. They stopped funding the Svetlogorsk affiliate of the Belarusian Lyceum. For holding protest pickets the Lyceum students were summoned to police. In Mosty they denied registration to the Free Trade Union. In Minsk there had been halted funding of the ruling body of the Trade Union Federation.

Stains on the uniform

Belarusian president is still striving to get accepted by Europe, hoping to gain her recognition of him. But in order to become a European he first needs to comply with the universal rules, respect an individual and his rights. The European continent prefers dealing with the civilized rulers, overlooking the dictators.

Belarusian government is attempting to produce an illusion of a civilized uniform, hiding behind it all its shortcomings. However, the European observers noticed them anyways. Head of the PACE observation mission Stefan Goris declared: “Repressions of the political regime, violation of the freedom of speech, undemocratic legislation, which created favorable pre-conditions for frauds and abuses, are the factors, which prove that the Belarusian authorities never really kept to the democratic standards, this being particularly true during the election campaign”. George Bush’s representative Ari Fleisher spoke in a more open manner: “Alexander Lukashenko, Europe’s last dictator, stole from his nation not only the elections’ results but more so the opportunity to return to the path of democracy and market economy.” In response, the Belarusian Foreign Ministry said the following: “Washington’s intentions to refute the election results and impose on the European community a hard-line policy towards Belarus once again reveals US aspirations to overthrow the constitutional order in the Republic of Belarus by any means.”

Despite these outcries, Europe one more time gives to the uniform wearer a chance to improve his damaged image and subdue to the well-known four conditions.

Terrorist attacks on the United States, that took place on September 11, temporarily hid from view the problem of stolen elections in Belarus. However, in the aftermath to the tragic events greater interest was aroused towards those, who collaborate with the terrorists. They took a closer look on Belarus too. In the October issue of the authoritative Polish magazine “Wprost” it is written that Belarus provides for the needs of terrorists on a worldwide scale. “In exchange for the sale of 8 MIG-29 jets to Peru in 1998, Alberto Fukhimori ruled to allocate in Peruvian banks Lukashenko’s finances, which he earned thru illicit arms sales. Weaponry, which Belarus sold, was used in most army conflicts in Africa. Angolan UNITA purchased from Lukashenko the tanks and systems “Smerch”, Sudan – missiles “Grad”, tanks T-55 and copters MI-24, Algeria bought MIGs, while Morocco – tanks. Belarusian weapons were also widely used during a civil war in Rwanda. Owing to the trade with the African nations, Lukashenko’s regime got blacklisted among the top ten world exporters of ammunition. The article further claims that Minsk is the greatest supplier of arms to the Muslim extremists and Alban insurgents.

That’s the general overview of human rights violations in Belarus, covering the period from the second half of September till the end of October. This report was based on the data derived from the web-page of the Belarusian radio “Svaboda”.