Belarus repression: More journalists land in jail

If the harassment of journalists in the run-up to the presidential election in Belarus was not enough, the regime has upstaged itself in its intensified crackdown against independent journalists with the arrest of many more, bringing to 22 the number rounded up since the start of the week, 19 of whom are still in prison.

READY TO STORM: Supporters of Opposition leader Alexander Milinkevich gather in a square in Minsk during a heavy snow storm, with some demonstrators waving the banned Belarus flag in Minsk, Belarus, Sunday, March 19, 2006. Thousands of opposition supporters gathered on a main square in central Minsk as polls closed in a disputed presidential election Sunday, shouting 'Long Live Belarus!' and chanting the name of main opposition candidate, Alexander Milinkevich.(AP Photo/Ivan Sekretarev)

"These arrests are intended to gag dissent and to sow a climate of terror in the country. The independent journalists should be immediately released," Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) said, calling on representatives of foreign countries in Belarus and on neighbouring countries to intervene on behalf of the jailed journalists.

Hundreds of people have been arrested in Minsk and across Belarus since March 20 during mass protests against the March 19 election of President Aleksandr Lukashenko to a further five years. The election returned a majority vote in Lukashenko's favour of 82 per cent. The opposition claims that the elections have been rigged and calls for a re-run. Demonstrators occupied October Square in Minsk for four days before being forcibly cleared by riot police on March 24. An estimated 10,000 people gathered there despite brutal attacks by police on demonstrators as they entered and left the square, mass arrests and an extraordinary threat by the Belarus intelligence service, the KGB, that protestors would be considered terrorists and served with the death penalty.

"Journalists are being systematically targeted by a government determined to suppress all independent reporting of the elections and the current protests," said International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) General Secretary Aidan White. "These are the acts of an intolerant authoritarian government which pleads innocent of election fraud while simultaneously arresting anyone attempting to investigate that fraud."

Among the nine journalists arrested are four members of the Belarus Association of Journalists (BAJ), a RSF partner. Freelancers Vadim Kaznacheyeu and Tatiana Vanina, and Tatsiana Snitko and Artsiom Liava, freelancer and photographer with Nasha Niva, were arrested at 3 in the morning and taken to an unknown place of detention.

Also picked up were non-accredited Canadian freelancer Frederic Levoi, Andrey Rasinski of the weekly Nasha Niva, Nino Giorgabiani and Georgiy Lagidze of the Georgian public broadcast group OGT, and Alexander Podrabinek of the Russian news agency Prima-News.

Thirteen other journalists remain behind bars, most of them sentenced to several days in prison for alleged "hooliganism", "taking part in an unauthorised gathering" or for "offering obscenities". They are being held in shocking conditions in overcrowded and unheated cells and with an utter lack of hygiene. Beds are wooden planks with no bedding and the toilet is a hole dug in the ground.

"The Belarusian authorities have yet again demonstrated a total disregard for freedom of expression. All those that have been detained for the legitimate and peaceful expression of their views must be released immediately," said Heather McGill, Amnesty International's researcher on Belarus. Belarus human rights organisation Vyasna estimates that 400 arrests may have taken place throughout the country. Many detentions are reportedly accompanied by beatings.

"Belarus must allow people their fundamental right to express dissent peacefully," said Holly Cartner, Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "Lukashenka leads one of the most repressive governments in Europe, with a terrible record on free speech and assembly. But the government must allow people to continue to speak their minds about the election."

The European Union has approved restrictive measures against senior Belarusian officials including the country's president, the Austrian foreign minister said Friday last. Ursula Plassnik told a news conference that the EU Council had approved restrictive measures against Belarusian officials responsible for violations of international election standards, including President Aleksandr Lukashenko. Austria currently holds the rotating presidency of EU.

SUPPORTERS: A supporter of the main Belarus opposition presidential candidate Alexander Milinkevich reads a newspaper featuring President Alexander Lukashenko on its front page as protests in downtown Minsk. Belarussian protestors camped out for a fifth day in central Minsk as an opposition party leader released from prison declared that President Alexander Lukashenko's regime was at a "dead-end."(AFP/Viktor Drachev)

The Council of Ministers, which includes EU members' heads of state or government and the European Commission president, condemned Belarusian authorities for detaining peaceful protesters who exercised their right to freedom of assembly by protesting against the election, which the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) found fraudulent, Plassnik said, demanding an immediate release of the protesters arrested the previous night, news agency RIA Novosti reported.

The United States joined European nations Friday in imposing sanctions on Belarus in retaliation for a crackdown on political protesters after an election that the White House said was fraudulent. White House press secretary Scott McClellan said Washington would act in unison with the European Union in applying targeted travel restrictions and financial sanctions against President Aleksandr Lukashenko and others.

"We urge all members of the international community to demand that authorities in Belarus respect the rights of their own citizens to express themselves peacefully and to condemn any and all abuses," McClellan said, Associated Press (AP) reported.

"The US and EU should continue strong support for human rights defenders, journalists and civil society activists in Belarus, not just call for a new election," Human Rights watch's Cartner said. "The US and EU should also keep Belarus on the agenda in their engagement with Russia, such as at the upcoming G-8 summit. They should make it clear to Russia that its support for the repressive government is unacceptable."

Arrested Journalists:

1. Andrej Pachobut ("Magazyn polski in Exile," Hrodna). Sentenced to 10 days of arrest on March 14, 2006.
2. Ihar Bantsar ("Glos znad Niemna in Exile," Hrodna). Sentenced to 10 days of arrest on March 21, 2006.
3. Andrzej Pisalnik ("Glos znad Niemna in Exile," Hrodna). Sentenced to12 days of arrest on March 21, 2006. The journalist was detained again after 5 days of arrest. Firstly, A. Pisalnik was sentenced on March 15, 2006.
4. Aliaksei Rads (Internet-resource forum.grodno.net, Hrodna). Sentenced to 10 days of arrest on March 21, 2006.
5. Andrej Dynko ("Nasha Niva," Minsk). Sentenced to 10 days of arrest on March 22, 2006.
6. Vadzim Aleksandrovich ("Belorusy i Rynok," Minsk). Sentenced to 10 days of arrest on March 22, 2006.
7. Aliaksei Shein (A. Milinkevich's Press Group, Minsk). Sentenced to 5 days of arrest on March 20, 2006.
8. Yury Chavusau (a journalist of the Assembly of NGOs Internet Portal, an author of "Palitychnaya sfera" and "ARCHE" magazines). Sentenced to 10 days of arrest on March 21, 2006.
9. Siarhej Salash (an "Offside" newspaper journalist (Barysau), A. Milinkevich's Election Team activist). The journalist was detained in Minsk on March 22, 2006 and sentenced to 13 days of arrest on March 23, 2006.
10. Ivan Roman (A "Salidarnasc" newspaper free-lance correspondent). The journalist was fined 2 base amounts on March 20, 2006. The journalist was threatened with a gun at the Piershamajski District Department of Internal Affairs in Minsk by some unknown civilian (!). On March 23, 2006 the journalist was detained again by the police in Hrodna for no apparent reason and sentenced to 13 more days of arrest.
11. Viktar Yarashuk ("Miastsovy Chas," Pinsk). The journalist was sentenced to 5 days of arrest on March 15, 2006. The journalist was detained again by the police on March 23. He has been sentenced to 6 days of arrest.
12. Anton Taras (a free-lance correspondent). The journalist was detained in Minsk on March 23, 2006 and sentenced to 11 days of arrest.
13. Vadzim Kaznacheyeu (a free-lance correspondent). The journalist was detained in Kastrychnitskaya Square in Minsk around 3 am on March 24, 2006.
14. Tatsiana Snitko (a "Nasha Niva" free-lance correspondent). The journalist was detained in Kastrychnitskaya Square in Minsk around 3 am on March 24, 2006.
15. Tatsiana Vanina (a BAJ member). Detained in Kastrychnitskaya Square in Minsk around 3 am on March 24, 2006.
16. Artsiom Liava (a "Nasha Niva" staff photo correspondent). Detained in Kastrychnitskaya Square in Minsk around 3 am on March 24, 2006.
17. Vital Vasilkou ("Deutche Welle," Mahileu). The journalist was sentenced to 7 days of arrest on March 23, 2006.
18. Aliaksei Salej ("Pahonia" Internet Site, Hrodna). The journalist was detained in Hrodna on March 24, 2006. He is waiting for a court verdict.
19. Valery Shchukin ("Narodnaya Vola," Viciebsk). Sentenced to 7 days of arrest on March 17, 2006. The journalist was released from arrest on March 23. However, he was detained again on his way to the railway station on March 24, 2006.

Journalists Released after Arrests:

1. Andrej Shantarovich ("Miestnaya Gazieta", Vaukavysk). The journalist was sentenced to 3 days of arrest on March 18, 2006.
2. Siarhej Niarouny ("Volny Horad," Krychau). The journalist was sentenced to 3 days of arrest on March 18, 2006.
3. Mikalaj Gierdziy ("Volny Horad," Krychau). The journalist was sentenced to 2 days of arrest on March 18, 2006.

Journalists Fined:

1. Volha Dziemchanka ("Odnako" newspaper, Minsk). The journalist was fined 20 base amounts (approximately USD 290) on March 21, 2006.
2. Alena Lukashevich (a free-lance correspondent). The journalist was detained in Minsk on March 23, 2006 and fined two base amounts.
3. Iryna Laurouskaya ("Brestski Courier"). Fined two based amounts by the Kastrychnitski City District Court of Minsk on March 23, 2006.

Foreign Journalists Arrested:

1. Andrij Lubka ("Karpatski Holos," Ukraine). The journalist was sentenced to 15 days of arrest on March 22, 2006.
2. Dzmitry Hurnevich (a "Radio Polonia" (Poland) free-lance correspondent). The journalist was sentenced to 10 days of arrest on March 21 (22?), 2006.
3. Frederic Levoi (a Canadian free-lance journalist, worked without an official accreditation). Reportedly, the journalist was detained in Kastrychnitskaya Square in Minsk around 3 am on March 24, 2006.
4. Nino Giorgabiani (Public TV of Georgia). Arrested near the Police Prison in Akrescin Street in Minsk on March 24.
5. Georg Lagidze (Public TV of Georgia). Arrested near the Police Prison in Akrescin Street in Minsk on March 24.
6. Aleksandr Podrabinek ("Prima-News" Human Rights Information Agency, Russia). Arrested in Kastrychnitskaya Square in Minsk.
7. Loren Milo ("La Liberation" newspaper correspondent, France). The journalist was detained in the evening on March 24. However, she was released some time later.
8. Alan Kallison ("Wall Street Journal," USA). The journalist was beaten in the city center of Minsk on March 25, 2006.
9. Paval Sharamet ("The First Channel," Russia). The journalist was detained and beaten hard by the riot police in the city center of Minsk on March 25, 2006. Reportedly, he was convoyed to the 2nd City Clinic of Minsk.

Journalists Discharged:

1. Siarzhuk Sierabro ("Vitsiebski Courier," Vitsiebsk). It has been the only case so far, when a judge decided to release a journalist and acknowledged that the correspondent carried out his professional duties.
2. Iryna Charniauka (www.euramost.org News Internet Site, Hrodna). The journalist was detained by the police on her way to the Hrodna railway station on March 24, 2006. However, she was released some time later.