24 September 2011, 23:59
FIDH opens trilingual website in support of human rights defender Ales Bialiatski
On September 25, Ales Bialiatski, Vice President of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the head of the Human Rights Centre "Viasna" (Spring) – a FIDH member-organization in Belarus, is 49 years old.
Mr Bialiatski's detention on suspicion of tax evasion has caused broad public resonance. Civil society activists of many countries speak in support of the Belarusian rights defender.
On September 25, the birthday of Ales Bialiatski, his colleagues and friends will send him greeting cards, the website of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Viasna" reports.
On the eve of his birthday, Souhayr Belhassen, President of the FIDH, also congratulated Ales Bialiatski in writing on behalf of all member organizations of the Federation and expressed her confidence of his soon release. "We are doing everything possible to see you in the near future and celebrate with you your release," Ms Belhassen wrote in her congratulatory letter.
With the aim to centralize solidarity actions of human rights activists around the world, the FIDH has opened a trilingual website "Freedom to Ales Bialiatski!", which will regularly post news messages from Bialiatski, information about his fate, official statements and declarations of international organizations on his case, information about actions of support and solidarity, publications on situation in Belarus. The website also presents video and photos materials depicting Bialiatski's activities for the last 7 years.
The FIDH and its member organization "Viasna" act as guarantors of his innocence and demand his immediate and unconditional release.
