Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07MINSK440
2007-05-24 15:08:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Minsk
Cable title:
TWO POLITICAL PRISONERS FREE, KOZULIN TO REMAIN IN
how-toVZCZCXRO5637 PP RUEHDBU RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHROV RUEHSR DE RUEHSK #0440 1441508 ZNY CCCCC ZZH P 241508Z MAY 07 FM AMEMBASSY MINSK TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6065 INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE PRIORITY 1577 RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE PRIORITY RUFOADA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L MINSK 000440
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/24/2017
TAGS: PGOV PHUM BO
SUBJECT: TWO POLITICAL PRISONERS FREE, KOZULIN TO REMAIN IN
PRISON
REF: A. 05 MINSK 601
B. 06 MINSK 731
C. MINSK 352
C O N F I D E N T I A L MINSK 000440
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/24/2017
TAGS: PGOV PHUM BO
SUBJECT: TWO POLITICAL PRISONERS FREE, KOZULIN TO REMAIN IN
PRISON
REF: A. 05 MINSK 601
B. 06 MINSK 731
C. MINSK 352
1. (C) On May 22, authorities granted parole to opposition
youth organization Malady Front founder Pavel Severinets and
opposition politician Nikolay Statkevich whom a Minsk court
had sentenced in May 2005 to internal exile for leading
unauthorized demonstrations against the official results of
Belarus' 2004 parliamentary elections (ref A). Severinets
and Statkevich had originally received sentences of three
years of internal exile, but authorities later reduced these
sentences under an amnesty law. Consequently, both
opposition leaders had been scheduled for release in late
July. Soon after his release, Statkevich publicly attributed
his release to GOB's efforts to demonstrate "liberalization"
in order to persuade the EU not to suspend the Generalized
System of Preferences trade benefits for Belarus. However,
Severinets privately told us that he and Statkevich credit
the United States with their early release and expressed
their deepest gratitude to the USG and the Embassy.
2. (C) A day earlier, Belarus' Supreme Court dismissed an
appeal seeking to overturn the politically-motivated July
2006 conviction of former opposition presidential candidate
Aleksandr Kozulin, who is serving five and one half years for
"malicious hooliganism" and "organizing persons to disturb
the public peace" (ref B). Kozulin's attorney, Igor
Rynkevich, told us that the Supreme Court's decision, signed
by the Court's Deputy Chairman Valeriy Kalinkovich, simply
repeated the arguments of the original and lower appellate
courts' dismissals. Rynkevich added that Kozulin and his
co-counsel Dmitriy Garatchko were considering a final appeal
to Supreme Court Chair Valentin Sukalo and Prosecutor General
Petr Miklashkevich but are "under no illusions" that these
top regime officials will overturn Kozulin's conviction.
Comment
--------------
3. (C) One month after EUR DAS David Kramer's visit to
Minsk, during which GOB Presidential Administration Deputy
Natalya Petkevich made promising overtures regarding
Belarusian political prisoners and pending prosecutions (ref
C),the regime continues to send mixed messages. Top GOB
leaders clearly consider the release of Severinets and
Statkevich and the expected lesser sentence against Malady
Front youth activists on May 28 -- fines rather than
imprisonment -- to be more expedient than Kozulin's release,
whom Lukashenko reportedly regards as a larger political
threat. Ambassador will meet May 25 with Kozulin's wife
Irina to learn more about the state of his case.
Stewart
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/24/2017
TAGS: PGOV PHUM BO
SUBJECT: TWO POLITICAL PRISONERS FREE, KOZULIN TO REMAIN IN
PRISON
REF: A. 05 MINSK 601
B. 06 MINSK 731
C. MINSK 352
1. (C) On May 22, authorities granted parole to opposition
youth organization Malady Front founder Pavel Severinets and
opposition politician Nikolay Statkevich whom a Minsk court
had sentenced in May 2005 to internal exile for leading
unauthorized demonstrations against the official results of
Belarus' 2004 parliamentary elections (ref A). Severinets
and Statkevich had originally received sentences of three
years of internal exile, but authorities later reduced these
sentences under an amnesty law. Consequently, both
opposition leaders had been scheduled for release in late
July. Soon after his release, Statkevich publicly attributed
his release to GOB's efforts to demonstrate "liberalization"
in order to persuade the EU not to suspend the Generalized
System of Preferences trade benefits for Belarus. However,
Severinets privately told us that he and Statkevich credit
the United States with their early release and expressed
their deepest gratitude to the USG and the Embassy.
2. (C) A day earlier, Belarus' Supreme Court dismissed an
appeal seeking to overturn the politically-motivated July
2006 conviction of former opposition presidential candidate
Aleksandr Kozulin, who is serving five and one half years for
"malicious hooliganism" and "organizing persons to disturb
the public peace" (ref B). Kozulin's attorney, Igor
Rynkevich, told us that the Supreme Court's decision, signed
by the Court's Deputy Chairman Valeriy Kalinkovich, simply
repeated the arguments of the original and lower appellate
courts' dismissals. Rynkevich added that Kozulin and his
co-counsel Dmitriy Garatchko were considering a final appeal
to Supreme Court Chair Valentin Sukalo and Prosecutor General
Petr Miklashkevich but are "under no illusions" that these
top regime officials will overturn Kozulin's conviction.
Comment
--------------
3. (C) One month after EUR DAS David Kramer's visit to
Minsk, during which GOB Presidential Administration Deputy
Natalya Petkevich made promising overtures regarding
Belarusian political prisoners and pending prosecutions (ref
C),the regime continues to send mixed messages. Top GOB
leaders clearly consider the release of Severinets and
Statkevich and the expected lesser sentence against Malady
Front youth activists on May 28 -- fines rather than
imprisonment -- to be more expedient than Kozulin's release,
whom Lukashenko reportedly regards as a larger political
threat. Ambassador will meet May 25 with Kozulin's wife
Irina to learn more about the state of his case.
Stewart