Sentence On “Narodnaya Volya” to be Pronounced Tomorrow :: Charter'97 :: News

Tomorrow in the city court of Minsk the sentence in the suit of ‘Alliance Media limited’ against the democratic newspaper “Narodnaya Volya” is to be pronounced. It was said by the judge Valentsina Zenkevich on the results of the sitting of the court that took place on February 16. The reason for the suit of the ‘Alliance Media limited’ (a founder of the weekly “Obozrevatel”) against the newspaper was the article published by the “Narodnaya Volya” on September 3, 2003 “Syarhey Atroschankaw’s “Obozrevatel” Treats Leanid Levin Like a Gangster”.

In this article it was said that on August 15, 2003 an inaccurate article by Hanna Murawskaya “MPs Kastyan, Navasyad and Fralow Are Personal Anti-Semites?” was published in the “Obozrevatel”. The editorial office of the “Obozrevatel” denied Leanid Levin the right to refute deceitful facts and offered him to go to court. ‘Alliance Media limited’ regarded the article of the “Narodnaya Volya” as damaging the reputation of the weekly “Obozrevatel”, and went to court with the suit where demanded to disclaim the information and impose a compensation of 50 million rubles on the defendants.

According to the editor-in-chief of the Narodnaya Volya, Iosif Syaredzich, the aim of the article in the “Obozrevatel” was to provoke international strife and show MPs Navasyad and Fralow as “unworthy people who have no right to participate in parliamentary and presidential elections”. Besides, Syaredzich said that the suit was aimed to cause financial and moral damage to the “Narodnaya Volya” and spoil its image.