BELARUS Jan 4: Lukashenko plotted murders in Germany. “Alexander Lukashenko authorised political murders in Germany in 2012”, according to a bugged recording of his former KGB-chief Vadim Zaitsev obtained and published by independent online newspaper EUobserver. EUobserver claims that it received a recording of a conversation between the former chairman of the KGB of Belarus, in which the physical elimination of some Belarusian political emigrants: Pavel Sheremet, former head of a detention center #1 in Minsk Oleg Alkaev, former commander of the OMON Vladimir Borodach, and former anti-corruption chief Vyacheslav Dudkin – is discussed.

BELARUS Dec 28: BYPOL: Tikhanovsky’s case files, audio of alleged ex Interior Minister’s speech leaked. BYPOL, a telegram channel of former investigators and law enforcers, published materials related to the arrest of Sergei Tikhanovsky. Among other things, there is an audio recording in which a man with a voice that sounds like Former Minister of Internal Affairs Yuri Karaev says that “he is more dangerous than all these Babarikos” and “he must be imprisoned for a long time.

BELARUS Dec 21: 40 days since the murder of Raman Bandarenka. No criminal case is yet opened. Minsk resident Raman Bandarenka passed away on November 12 at the age of 31. Allegedly, he was beaten to death by pro-Lukashenka thugs and/or police officers. Events in memory of Raman Bandarenka are held all over Belarus. Dec 21: Belarus authorities set up database of participants in ‘unauthorised rallies’. On the back of ‘the events of August 9’, the ministry decided to establish a special unified database which would include information about the citizens identified or detained during unauthorised mass events so that Belarusian law enforcers could widely use the data collected in their work.

BELARUS Dec 14: Minsk: Pensioners’ March dispersed, dozens detained. The Minsk police have thwarted Monday’s March of Pensioners, also known as Wisdom March. Over the past months, pro-opposition elderly Minskers have made Monday’s event an unofficial tradition; as a rule, they move along central streets to Yakub Kolas Square. Students and health workers often join the march. About 80 pensioners were detained. Dec 15: 87-year-old woman convicted in Minsk for flag on balcony.

BELARUS Dec 8: Two years in prison for writing on a sidewalk. Five Belarusians were judged guilty, four of them sentenced to prison terms for writing “We won’t forget” near the memorial to Alexander Taraikovsky who was murdered in Aug. Frunzensky district court judged 25-year old Maria Bobovich and 26-year old Maxim Pavlyuschik guilty of a felony and sentenced them to 2 years in prison and 1.5 years of restriction of freedom respectively.

BELARUS Nov 29: Sunday Neighbours’ March Stats: 400 detained. Over 400 people incl. two journalists were detained across the country last Sunday with many beaten and dozens hospitalized. Nov 30: Monday Pensioners March. To prevent the column from further marching, security forces used pepper spray and targeted detentions against protesters. Seniors March Dec 1: Newly established BY_POL group brings together law enforcement defectors. A number of defectors from the police, public prosecutor’s office, and other law enforcement agencies have formed a group BY_POL appealing to their former colleagues to serve the people and not the regime.

BELARUS Nov 23: Repressions target students’ unions. Belarusian human rights organizations demand freedom for politically repressed students and professors. The Belarusian authorities arrested leaders of the oldest student organization in Belarus, the Belarusian Students Association. The searches were conducted in the office of the BSA and in the students’ apartments. The arrested students and a professor are recognized to be political prisoners. Nov 23: Weekly Seniors’ March. Hundreds of retirees have protested in the Belarusian capital to demand the resignation of the usurper.