one of Viasna’s volunteer coordinators
Cases- Case status
- Unknown
- Location of case in SG report
- 2021-002-002
- Relevant SG report
- Year of the report
- 2021
- From Country
- Country Geolocation
Latitude: 53.709807
Longitude: 27.953389
- Country Geolocation (linked Cases)
- Belarus
- From Region
- UN body that raised the case prior to the SG report
- UN Special Procedures: Thematic
- Dates of prior UN action
- On 19 March 2021
- Type of record
- Unnamed individual/group/organization
- Gender
- Gender unclear
- Was the victim a foreign national?
- No
- Was the victim a minor?
- No
- Individual's/organization's activity
one of Viasna’s volunteer coordinators
- Type of rights defended
- Civil/political rights
- Economic/social rights
- Was the victim a civil servant or member of the security forces or of the judiciary?
- No
- Engagement with UN body
- Unclear
- Dates of engagement
- unclear
- Type of attempted engagement
- Unclear
- Dates of mentioned reprisals
- unclear
- Location of mentioned reprisals
- Belarus
- Reprisal information
arrest and additional charges
- Types of reprisals suffered
- Charge/Investigation/Prosecution: Charge/Investigation/Prosecution - General
- Detention/Imprisonment: Detention/Imprisonment - General
- Alleged/likely perpetrators
- State actors
- Was the reprisal based on new legislation?
- No
- Does the report make general comment about country’s environment for engagement with UN?
- No
- Was the case raised by a State at the UN?
- Yes
- Which State raised the case at the UN and when?
The case of the Human Rights Center ‘Viasna’ in Belarus was publicly raised by the group of countries BENELUX (Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg), Liechtenstein and Germany.
- Is the country cited for a "pattern of reprisal" in the context of this case?
- No
- Is a pattern of reprisals mentioned otherwise in the context of this case?
- No
- Does the report cite "self-censorship" as an issue in the context of this case?
- No
- How many times has the case been followed up in subsequent SG reports?
- 1
- In which SG report was this case followed up on? 0
- 2022
- Follow up information provided in SG report 0
In her 2022 report to the Human Rights Council, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus addressed the situation of Viasna’s staff and the targeting of the NGO. On 7 September 2021, a group of mandate holders addressed the arrest and criminal prosecution under articles 243 (tax evasion) and 342 (violation of public order) of the Criminal Code of several Viasna representatives, staff members and collaborators (BLR 8/2021). They expressed concern that these events unfolded in the context of the adoption of the UN Human Rights Council resolution 47/19 on the situation of human rights in Belarus, and the renewal of the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus on 13 July 2021.
- Followup Trends 0
- Deterioration/further reprisals
- Date of follow up 0
- 2022, 7 September 2021
- Was this case followed up by a UN body? 0
- UN Special Procedures: Country
- UN Special Procedures: Thematic