Show solidarity with ARCHE!

Submitted by admin on Tue, 11/06/2012 - 22:33

“ARCHE” is the only thick monthly magazine in the Belarusian language which has been regularly issued since 1998. However, the events that have been taking place since the arrest of it’s the then chief editor Valer Bulhakau can put a cross on the further existence of the edition.

On one hand, an “in-depth” check up of the economic activities of the magazine is being held by the Financial Investigations Department of the State Control Committee, on the other – the Belarusian TV started the campaign of besmearing the magazine through the hosts and journalists of the criminal chronicle program “Zone X”.

Among other things it is stated that “ARCHE” and his former chief editor Bulhakau are guilty of publishing materials “with a claim to extremism”. At the same time, the magazine is well known for printing primarily scientific and popular scientific texts of domestic and foreign authors, and the specific content of the publications has not caused any significant comments from the Ministry of Information of the Republic of Belarus in the recent years.

Despite this, some forces are clearly interested the annulment of the registration certificate of “ARCHE” by the Ministry of Information which would discontinue its publication. In this situation, we call on all people of good will to show solidarity with “ARCHE”. In particular, it can be down by writing appeals to the Information Minister Aleh Vitoldavich Praliaskouski on this address: 220004, Minsk, Peramozhtsau 10.

The approximate content of the letter can be as follows:

Dear Aleh Vitoldavich,

I am deeply concerned with the cancellation of registration of the monthly magazine “ARCHE-Pachatak”. As far as I know, in the recent years the Ministry of Information has not issued any warnings to the magazine in connection with the content of the materials which were published in it, that’s why there are no legal grounds for the liquidation of the edition. The termination of the issue of the magazine would doubtlessly become a great loss to the Belarusian science and culture.

http://spring96.org/en/news/58843

News of Belarus

Belarus prisoner release: Same old trick

Submitted by admin on Sun, 08/23/2015 - 21:00

Good news from Belarus is rare, but last weekend president Alexander Lukashenko pardoned six political prisoners.

For the pardoned, all serving multi-year prison terms for challenging Belarus’ autocracy, this is, to say the least, a relief, and has been welcomed by local democrats and the international community.

Lukashenko has declared his decision an act of “humanity”. But is, in fact, a carefully timed tactical move to sway the European Union at a time of growing domestic and geopolitical pressure.

The question is whether he will succeed this time.

The International Day of Solidarity with Belarus 2015

Submitted by admin on Mon, 08/17/2015 - 13:49

Seven countries around the world celebrated the International Day of Solidarity with Belarus on August the 4th. Human and civil rights activists, as well as other people who are simply sympathetic with the citizens of Belarus and who share deep concern about their future, took part in online discussions, talked to people on the streets and posted various material in social media in order to raise awareness of countless violations of human rights in Belarus.

Solidarity with civil society in Belarus

Submitted by admin on Mon, 08/03/2015 - 21:00

4 August is an international day of solidarity with the civil society of Belarus. This day matters, because of the daily pressure against civil society in Belarus.

When a coalition of international civil society organisations, at the initiative of the International Youth Human Rights Movement of Voronezh (Russian Federation), launched the idea of an international solidarity day with civil society in Belarus, the country was coming out of the 2010 presidential election cycle, which symbolically ended with the arrest of the country’s leading human rights defender Ales Bialiatski.

The 4 August is key to Belarus, because of Ales Bialiatski’s arrest on this day in 2011. The day is now a symbol of President Alyaksandr Lukashenka’s repeated practice of arbitrary arrest of voices criticising his way of governing the country.