Prosecutor’s Office Pressurizes Representatives of National Minorities :: Charter'97 :: News

Representatives of national minorities and religious denominations who signed the Address to Alyaksandr Lukashenka in support of the leader of the Union of Poles in Belarus, Andzhelika Borys, not recognized by the authorities, could have serious troubles.

The address has been signed by eight persons. The text of the address has been approved at the conference of interdenominational and international initiative “Zgoda”. Those who signed the address, including representatives of German, Gypsy, Tartar and Polish communities, demanded to stop interference into the internal affairs of public associations of the minorities by the authorities and to establish dialogue with their representatives.

Despite of the fact that two months have passed since the address was signed, the members of the initiative have not received an answer from Lukashenka’s administration. But the Committee on Religions and Nations Affairs reacted and asked the prosecutor’s office to make an enquiry. The head of supervision department Pavel Eliseeu summons every person who had signed the address and finds out to which community they belong.

“It is very strange, as a national community is not a public association or political party. The only aim of summoning people to the office of public prosecutor is to intimidate them, so that would stop their activism. It creates psychological pressure,” said the executive director of the initiative “Zgoda” Alyaksandr Zyalko to Radio Svaboda.