Sunday, December 26, 2010

Belarus Update 2 and 3: Urgent: our concerns -- Olga from Belarus

From my friend Olga -- Belarus

Dear friends,

 

thanks for your support and your desire to help us.

What concerns the ideas what you could do, I will share with you some.

- organise picketing of the Belarusian embassies http://www.belembassy.org/index_eng.html condemning violence and repressions and demanding to free the prisoners and follow the democratic rules, punish those guilty of violent actions (of course, this was sanctioned by the authorities, but still it is important to demand justice). We are concerned about Christian Democrats Vital Rymasheuski, Paval Sieviarynets (both Orthodox Christians) in the first place, but surely about all arrested and beaten ex-candidates and their representatives http://naviny.by/rubrics/english/2010/12/23/ic_articles_259_171791, as well as hundreds of people who are now in prison in overcrowded cells with bad sanitary conditions and food. It would be great if journalists will write about your initiatives in the mass media.

 

- make enquiries with your Ministries of External Affairs and ask if they are following up the situation. The reaction of the EU and the USA was strong in condemning the actions of the authorities in Minsk, but concrete sanctions have to be applied to influence the regime (visa sanctions, economic measures, etc.)

 

- contact the churches in Belarus and ask them if they are following up the situation, if they are providing moral and pastoral support for those who are in prison.

Union of the Evangelical Christian Baptists in Belarus. Tel.+375(17) 295-6784
Mob. +375(29) 389-8221, +375(29) 278-3095

 

Some priests have offered their assistance on personal level, but that is very little.

 

- spread the information about the events to your Belarusian friends if you have any, as the state mass media provide only one-sided information and many people even in Belarus don't know what actually happened.

 

- organise prayer circles for Belarus

 

- financial support is also needed, but difficult to be delivered to Belarus, and has to be discussed by skype.

 

Best regards,

Olga

 

p.s. tomorrow 27 December the Belarusian Christian Democrats are organising a press-conference, where Vital's wife, Nasta is going to speak. Please, pray for her and for the event. Please, pray for Vital and all prisoners of the Belarusian regime.

 

 

http----- Original Message -----

From: Olga

Sent: Saturday, December 25, 2010 11:21 PM

Subject: urgent: our concerns

 

Dear friends,

 

some of you have received from me the news about the results of the last presidential elections and massive acts of violence from the side of the current authorities in Belarus. Some news in English are here http://www.rferl.org/section/Belarus/152.html,

http://www.spring96.org/en, http://euroradio.by/en/1439/ (the office of the Euroradio is being searched in the time when I'm writing to you, so I don't know if it will work tomorrow).

 

19 people were arrested and now are suspected in organising and implementing mass riots (this from 5 to 15 years in prison), about 700 people from the protesters and some accidental people are now in prison for 10-15 days. Arrests and searches continue the whole of this week, even today during Christmas day. We don't know how far the Belarusian regime is going to go. They carefully planned the scenario of putting an end to any opposition in the county.

 

The patriarch Kirill congratulated our dictator with the victory of the elections, so did the Russian president today. It is hard to expect any help from the side of the majority churches (Orthodox and Catholic), all official church leaders (Protestant as well) are silent.

 

One of the democratic presidential candidates, Vital Rymasheuski, who represents Belarusian Christian Democrats, is a close friend of mine, we are in one church community for more than 10 years. Vital is now also arrested and facing the danger of being sentenced to 5-15 years of prison. He met his advocate only once, his physical state was normal on Monday 20 December, but he had headache, because he was hit on the head during the attack by the riot police. Now we are helping his family, his wife and daughter. All Vitals friends may be suspected of participating in the criminal activities and plans to overthrow the power.

 

President Lukashenko promised to reveal the secrete plans of the opposition and the dirty materials prepared by his servants are expected to appear next week in the state mass media (there's almost now independent mass media apart from internet, which is also being controlled).

 

We don't know what will happen tomorrow, so we urge you to monitor the information from Belarus yourself and organise protest actions at all available levels (Ministries of External Affairs, political parties, Christian and human rights organisations and churches). Before 2006 the authorities were using the oppressive law on freedom of religion to arrest and make searches in the flats and houses where "unregistered religious groups" were conducting religious activities. Bible readings and church home group meeting are illegal in our country for all Christian confessions. So if they would wish so, the authorities can start the same repressions against Christians and any other "dangerous" groups.

 

At the moment we need to advocate for the release of all prisoners in Belarus among whom there are many Christians as well. We need do demand to stop violence and repressions against citizens of Belarus. The county is paralised by fear and only few people dare to do things openly.

 

Many of you know my mobile and home phones, it would be great if you could now and then check if everything is fine. My skype name is grammatea (Vol'ha), so you could also use this for connection.

 

Best wishes for your Christmas celebrations,

 

Olga

 

 

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