Newsletter: Nov 30-Dec 7

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.

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.

Dec 1: Tsihanouskaya launches the ‘book of crimes’. Unified Crime Record Book launched by Sviatlana Tsihanouskaya should not allow impunity for those who commit atrocities and crimes. According to Tsihanouskaya, “Using the platform, people can record law violations by the regime which will allow lawyers to initiate criminal proceedings both abroad & in the new Belarus.”

Dec 3: Swiss citizen facing up to 5 years in Belarusian prison. Natalia Hershe, Swiss citizen, is on trial in Minsk facing up to five years in prison. Hershe is accused of violently resisting the ‘police officer’ during a women’s march on September 19 when she tried to remove the balaclava from the police officer who detained her.

Dec 3: Ukrainian mercenaries serving in Belarusian riot police. Officers of the Ukrainian special forces unit “Berkut” (members of which shot Ukrainian Maidan protesters in 2014) now serve in the Belarusian riot police and participate in the crackdown on the protests in Minsk. Belarusian journalists identified some of them.

Dec 4: The number of political prisoners in Belarus has reached 160. Belarusian human rights defenders issued a joint statement recognizing the persecution of 160 citizens as politically motivated and solely connected with the exercise of their freedom of peaceful assembly and expression.

Dec 6: Sunday March of Freedom – at least 300 detained. There were more than 40 micro-marches mainly in residential districts of Minsk and other cities accompanies by solidarity protests abroad. The regime has blocked the Telegram instant messaging app and shut down the mobile internet in Minsk downtown. The Ministry of Interior of the regime counted at least 300 detainees.

INTERNATIONAL

Dec 2: “They raped me with truncheons” – the truth about Lukashenko’s brutal war on opposition activists. Swedish media outlet ETC published a horrifying story of a Belarusian woman who was brutally abused in prison by members of the regime forces.

Dec 4: EU urges Belarusian authorities to release imprisoned journalists Peter Stano, Spokesman for the European External Action Service, called on the regime to release all imprisoned Belarusian journalists and re-establish the popular portal TUT.BY’s status as a media outlet. The EU also plans to increase its economic support for Belarus after democratic transition.

Dec 5: The Economist Interviews Tsihanouskaya. Articles here and here.

Dec 6: Norwegian partner of Belaruskali stands up for fired miners. As the world’s leading fertilizer company and a provider of environmental solutions, Yara, is concerned about the situation in Belarus. According to the Norwegian company which purchases potash fertilizers in Belarus, violation of human and worker rights in Belarus is unacceptable. More than 100 Belaruskali miners took part in the strike and at least 55 of them have already been fired.