BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

02/12/2005

Belarus parliament gets tough on dissent

ISN SECURITY WATCH (Friday, 2 December: 22.45 CET) - Belarus' parliament has approved a controversial bill aimed at controlling dissent against the regime of President Aleksander Lukashenko, news agencies reported on Friday.

The new criminal code calls for stiff penalties for anyone convicted of inciting demonstrations or spreading information critical of how the country is run.

Under the newly approved law, it is a criminal offense to "discredit" the government, and any public appeals for the overthrow of the government are to be punishable with prison terms of up to three years, the BBC reported.

Observers told reporters the new law was clearly designed to prevent a "color revolution" during elections, such as those overthrew long-time leaders in Ukraine and Georgia.

The Belarusian Helsinki Committee (BHC) human rights group said in a Friday statement that it was deeply concerned that the new law would hinder the work of human rights activists.

Earlier in November, the EU threatened fresh sanctions against Belarus in an attempt to step up pressure for democratic reforms ahead of presidential elections next year, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported.

On 8 November, EU minister meeting in Brussels said the sanctions could possibly include visa bans and asset freezes.

Lukashenko has lead Belarus with an iron hand for the past 11 years, and intends to run for re-election in 2006.

His government has been accused by Western powers and human rights organizations of grave rights violations.

Source:

http://www.isn.ethz.ch/news/sw/details.cfm?ID=13707

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