{"id":16701,"date":"2024-09-03T12:41:02","date_gmt":"2024-09-03T12:41:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/penbelarus.org\/?p=16701"},"modified":"2024-09-17T08:27:31","modified_gmt":"2024-09-17T08:27:31","slug":"hronika-parushennyau-pravou-chalaveka-u-sfery-kultury-15-31-zhniunya-2024-goda","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/penbelarus.org\/en\/2024\/09\/03\/hronika-parushennyau-pravou-chalaveka-u-sfery-kultury-15-31-zhniunya-2024-goda.html","title":{"rendered":"Chronicle of human rights violations in the sphere of culture (15-31 August 2024)"},"content":{"rendered":"

As of\u00a0<\/strong>31<\/strong> August<\/strong>\u00a02024, at least 16<\/strong>4<\/strong>\u00a0cultural figures, including not less than 38\u00a0People of the Word, were behind bars.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Journalist, writer, and human rights defender Uladzimir Chilmanovi\u010d<\/strong> was sentenced in absentia to five years of imprisonment.<\/p>\n

Historian Ruslan<\/strong> Pra<\/strong>\u016b<\/strong>da<\/strong> was sentenced to home confinement.<\/p>\n

Ruslan<\/strong> Musvidas<\/strong>, soloist at M. Finberg National Academic Concert Orchestra, was sentenced to home confinement.<\/p>\n

Maryja Kalesnikava<\/strong> does not get letters in the penal colony; they are torn before her.<\/p>\n

Local history enthusiast Uladzimir Hundar<\/strong>, recognised as a political prisoner, was deprived of food parcels until March 2025.<\/p>\n

A court in Belarus designated designer Uladzimir Cesler (Tsesler)<\/strong>\u2019s Instagram page as \u201cextremist materials.\u201d<\/p>\n

Historian Ihar Mielnika\u016b<\/strong>\u2019s three books were labelled \u201cextremist.\u201d The historian has remained behind bars for six months, awaiting trial in a politically motivated criminal case.<\/p>\n

The video and song based on Janka Kupala<\/strong>\u2019s poem Who Are You?<\/em> (1908) were labelled \u201cextremist.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n
I. <\/strong>Criminal prosecution of cultural figures, authors<\/strong>,<\/strong> and performers<\/strong><\/h5>\n

1.<\/strong> On 16 August, it became known that the Investigative Committee began the so-called special proceedings against comedian Slava <\/strong>Kamisaranka <\/strong>under three articles of the Criminal Code, including the “insult of the president.\u201d Courts in Belarus apply “special proceedings,” or trial in absentia, against people physically not present in Belarus.<\/p>\n

2.<\/strong> On 19 August, the Hrodna Regional Court convicted journalist, writer, and human rights defender Uladzimir Chilmanovi\u010d in absentia. He was found guilty of “repeatedly facilitating extremist activities” and taking part in “an extremist formation.” He was sentenced to five years in a medium-security penal colony and a fine of 1,000 base units or 40,000 BYN (~ $12,204) under Part 1 and Part 2 of Article 361.4, Part 3, Article 361.1 of the Criminal Code. A TV, a washing machine, a refrigerator, a computer system unit, a cultural and educational building in Navasiolki, Masto\u016bski district, and an apartment were confiscated from him. The evidence in the case includes screenshots with the texts from Uladzimir Chilmanovi\u010d\u2019s blog. Uladzimir has not lived in Belarus for more than three years.<\/p>\n

3.<\/strong> On 19 August, it became known that guitarist Ruslan Pra<\/strong>\u016b<\/strong>da<\/strong> was sentenced to home confinement under Part 1 of Article 342 of the Criminal Code (active participation in group actions that grossly violate public order). The term of punishment is still unknown. Ruslan Pra\u016bda played in the initial line-up of the Krama rock band formed in 1991. Since 2004, he has played with The Little Blues.<\/p>\n

4. Ruslan Musvidas<\/strong>, soloist of the M. Finberg National Academic Concert Orchestra, was sentenced to home confinement under Part 1 of Article 342 of the Criminal Code (active participation in group actions that grossly violate public order). The term of punishment is still unknown.<\/p>\n

5.<\/strong> Historian Ihar Mielnika\u016b<\/strong> has remained behind bars for about six months, awaiting trial and facing charges under Part 1 of Article 361.4 of the Criminal Code (facilitating extremist activity). The trial will begin on 10 September.<\/p>\n

II<\/strong>. <\/strong>Administrative prosecution<\/strong><\/h5>\n

On 22 August, the Dok\u0161ycy District Court punished Hienadz Dzianskievi\u010d, the owner of the Nara\u010danski Kraj farmstead in the village of Stanisla\u016bcy, Dok\u0161ycy district, for “disseminating extremist materials,” under an article in the Code of Administrative Offences. Hienadz Dzianskievi\u010d runs a video channel on YouTube. The outcome of the trial is yet to be known.<\/p>\n

III. <\/strong>Conditions in place of incarceration <\/strong><\/h5>\n

1.<\/strong> In female penal colony No 4 in Homiel, Maryja Kalesnikava<\/strong> does not get letters in the penal colony; they are torn before her.<\/p>\n

2.<\/strong> Local history enthusiast Uladzimir Hundar<\/strong>, recognized as a political prisoner, was deprived of food parcels until March 2025.<\/p>\n

IV. Censorship and persecution for artistic works<\/strong><\/h5>\n

1<\/strong>.<\/strong> On 17 August, Mahilo\u016b\u2019s Leninski District Court designated the Belarusian-language Wikipedia fans\u2019 community on VKontakte and the Wikipedia<\/strong> channel on Telegram as \u201cextremist materials.\u201d<\/p>\n

2.<\/strong> On 23 August, the district court in Puchavi\u010dy, Minsk region, designated designer Uladzimir Cesler (Tsesler)<\/strong>\u2019s Instagram page as \u201cextremist materials.\u201d<\/p>\n

3.<\/strong> On 30 August, it became known that the Barysa\u016b District Court labelled as “extremist materials” Lyapis Trubetskoy<\/strong> band\u2019s song and music video Cattle Is Not What I Want to Be<\/em> based on Belarusian literature classic Janka Kupala\u2019s<\/strong> 1908 poem Who Are You?<\/em>.<\/p>\n

4.<\/strong> On 30 August, it became known that Minsk\u2019s Central District Court designated as “extremist” three books by the historian I<\/strong>har<\/strong> M<\/strong>i<\/strong>elnik<\/strong>a\u016b<\/strong>: Ni\u010dyparuk P.K., Mielnika\u016b I.B. Odyssey <\/em>of a <\/em>Pale<\/em>ssie Man<\/em>. Minsk: Alpha-book, 2017; Mielnika\u016b, I. B. The <\/em>Forgotten <\/em>C<\/em>orps: <\/em>The<\/em> H<\/em>istory of the Polish <\/em>A<\/em>rmy on the <\/em>T<\/em>erritory of Babru<\/em>jsk Region<\/em> in 1918, 1919\u20131920<\/em>. Minsk: Alpha-book, 2018; Mielnika\u016b, I. B. On the “<\/em>B<\/em>order of <\/em>C<\/em>ivilizations”. Pages of history of the <\/em>P<\/em>re-<\/em>W<\/em>ar Soviet-Polish <\/em>Border <\/em>in Belarus<\/em> Minsk: Alfa-kniga, 2020. Ihar Mielnika\u016b has remained behind bars for six months under investigation in a politically motivated criminal case. The trial is scheduled for 10 September.<\/p>\n

V<\/strong>. <\/strong>Forced emigration of cultural figures <\/strong><\/h5>\n

D<\/strong>z<\/strong>mitry <\/strong>J<\/strong>es<\/strong>i<\/strong>an<\/strong>i<\/strong>evi<\/strong>\u010d<\/strong>, a Kupala Theatre actor and member of the ChinChinChannel satirical show on YouTube, left Belarus under the threat of repression. The actor was detained in May 2024 after returning from a tour abroad. He served an administrative arrest in the Akrescina detention centre.<\/p>\n

V<\/strong>I<\/strong>. <\/strong>Dismissals of cultural figures <\/strong><\/h5>\n

Andrej Huzij<\/strong> was dismissed from the post of the head of the Belarusian State Youth Theatre.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As of\u00a031 August\u00a02024, at least 164\u00a0cultural figures, including not less than 38\u00a0People of the Word, were behind bars. Journalist, writer, and human rights defender Uladzimir Chilmanovi\u010d was sentenced in absentia to five years of imprisonment. Historian Ruslan Pra\u016bda was sentenced to home confinement. Ruslan Musvidas, soloist at M. Finberg National Academic Concert Orchestra, was sentenced<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":16751,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4255],"tags":[4291,4285],"class_list":["post-16701","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cultural-right","tag-chronicle","tag-hronika"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/penbelarus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16701","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/penbelarus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/penbelarus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/penbelarus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/64"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/penbelarus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16701"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/penbelarus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16701\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16752,"href":"https:\/\/penbelarus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16701\/revisions\/16752"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/penbelarus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16751"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/penbelarus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16701"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/penbelarus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16701"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/penbelarus.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16701"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}