A search is taking place in the private house of Zubr activist from Baranavichy, Anastasia Vasilenka. The search is carried out by officers of the Criminal Investigation Department of Baranovichy, Vyachaslau Vyachaslavavich Radomsky and Andrey Anatolyevich Majsuk. The policemen said that the girl is allegedly suspected of committing a theft of a mobile phone, and showed a sanction of the prosecutor for a search. The police officers of the Criminal Investigation Department are seizing printed materials, which is kept in the apartment, as well as note-books and documents. Anastasia Vasilenka is threatened by criminal liability for storing oppositional leaflets.

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“I have graduated from Belarusian institute of Physical Culture, and as a former sportsman I can say that Belarusian Olympians have become hostage of immoral political games of Lukashenka. After the PACE decision it was clear that something of the kind could happen to Sivakou (Sivakov), but our “greatest athlete” had a temptation that thanks to the Olympic Charter Sivakou could steal in, and it would demonstrate that the theme of the disappeared in Belarus is not important for Europe. But this plan failed. And now it would become not only a political scandal. This information would be publicized also by all world sports channels and printed media. Belarus and Belarusian sportsmen would be lashed into by sports commentators all over the world. Our Sportsmen, who are in the state of agitation before the start now, would receive additional great stress. I will not be surprised if Lukashenka would about the boycott of the Olymic Games,” told coordinator of the civil initiative Charter’97 Dzmitry Bandarenka, commenting on the decision of the EU not to issue entrance visa for Belarusian Sports and Tourism Minister Yury Sivakou.

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“I am content that the countries of the EU took seriously the conclusion of the report of Christos Pourgourides, approved in April by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. It is an unprecedented case, and it means that Europe started to fulfill the PACE recommendations. But I would like the EU actions be more strict. I hoped that Sivakov would be allowed in Greece and arrested. That could have given real hope for progress in investigation of the disappearances cases. I hope that further steps of the European Union would become harsher, and it would come to arrests of persons who were mentioned in the report of Pourgourides: Viktar Shejman, Yury Sivakou, Dzmitry Pauluchenka, Uladzimer Navumau,” told one of the leaders of the civil initiative “We remember” Svyatlana Zavadskaya, whose husband disappeared without traces in 2000, commenting to the Charter’07 press center the refusal of the EU to issue EU visa to Yury Sivakou (Yuri Sivakou), Belarusian Minister of Sports and Touris, who wanted to attend the Olympics in Greece. In the statement it is underlined that Sivakou was called “one of the key figures” in the special report of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in the disappearances of four dissidents in Belarus.

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The Embassy of the United States deplores the actions of the Belarusian authorities that have led the internationally respected European Humanities University to cease its activities. The annulment of the university`s license and lease and the order to vacate its premises by August 5 without legal appeal would appear to violate not only Belarusian laws but also the very principles of academic freedom. The United States had asked the Belarusian authorities at the highest level to rescind these orders to allow the university to continue its educational activities unhindered. The United States views these actions as a distressing sign of the Belarusian authorities` continuing hostile attitude toward independent education. Such an unfortunate attitude only serves to isolate Belarus more from the mainstream of society in the trans-Atlantic community of nations.

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On August 5 students of the European Humanities University have carried out a protest action in defense of their university. Unlike the first spontaneous protest on July 28 by the entrance of the university, this meeting took place in the enclosed court of the building in the Pyatrus Brouka Street, 3A. Though the protest was announced widely, and all concerned people were invited to it, the place of the meeting had been changed the hour before the beginning.

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I am grateful to all people who took part in the protest on July 21. First of all, I am thankful to the young people, activists of the Zubr movement and the Young Front. I am also thankful to the deputies of the group “Respublika”, who have gone through a considerable evolution during the last year or two, and from an “office politicians” they have become organizers of street actions. I understand how difficult it is, but I think it was a big step forward,” told coordinator of he civil initiative Charter’97 Dzmitry Bandarenka, who was released after 15 days of arrest for participation of the action on July 21, dedicated to the end of the 10-year period of Lukashenka’s rule.

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The US embassy in Minsk has expressed “profound disappointment and concern” over the recent decision of the Supreme Court of Belarus to outlaw the Belarusian Party of Labor (BPL). In its statement issued on Wednesday, the embassy urges Belarus to abide by its commitments as an OSCE member state.

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If it is impossible to print the newspaper Narodnaya Volya in Belarus, it will be printed Vilnius, Editor-in-Chief Iosif Seredich told reporters on Thursday. He noted that the newspaper had managed to continue publication even when it was twice forced into exile in Vilnius and when it was left without money. "The Narodnaya Volya has been in existence for a decade and will exist for 100 years more," Mr. Seredich stressed.

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The Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ) on August 5 called on businessman Sergei Atroshchenko and Yegor Rybakov, former head of the Belarusian State Television and Radio Company, to "give up their rapacious financial claims” against the private newspaper Narodnaya Volya.

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Mahmoud Al-Abrash, chairman of the People`s Council of Syria, proposed establishing sister city relations between Brest and Syria`s Homs. The Syrian parliamentary speaker expressed this proposal while meeting with Konstantin Sumar, chairman of the Brest Regional Executive Committee, Denis Dokuchits, Mr. Sumar’s press secretary, told BelaPAN.

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The European Union was preparing to impose a visa ban on the Belarusian minister of sport and tourism and prevent him attending the Olympics because of his alleged involvement in human rights abuses, Greece`s foreign ministry said Thursday. It was not clear if Yuri Sivakov was planing to travel to Athens for the Aug. 13-29 games to accompanying his country`s 181 Olympic athletes. Sivakov and Belarus` authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko have been implicated in the disappearances of prominent opposition political figures.

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