Independent trade union`s lawyer demands retraction of «libelous» story about son :: Charter'97 :: News

Leanid Sudalenka, a legal expert with the Union of Electronic Industry Workers, has demanded that a state-run newspaper in the Homyel region should retract what he calls a libelous story about his son.

Last week`s edition of the Homelskaya Pravda featured an article about the children of Homyel-based opposition politicians who currently study abroad under foreign-funded programs.

The author of the article, identified as S.Hrushenka, wrote that Mr. Sudalenka`s son studied at a Polish university under a program for Belarusian opposition activists "although he never took part in the opposition`s activities."

As Mr. Sudalenka told BelaPAN, he demands a retraction of the story as his son studies in Poland under a different program.

Apart from this, the independent labor union`s expert has pointed to many inconsistencies in the story.

In particular, the author of the story said that Civil Initiatives, a Homyel-based NGO of which Mr. Sudalenka is a member, had been closed down by a court over irregularities in its activities. In his letter to the newspaper, the activist contends that the UN Human Rights Council has