03.12.2020: Update
We wanted to share a quick update as we have received information from our local partner that a decision was expected shortly that could have had a devastating impact on the fate of the Children’s hospice and as a result on the children that benefit from crucial care. Unexpectedly, this decision has been postponed until 14 December, which we believe could be a result of the international pressure created by this UA.
At the moment, we are gathering additional information about this proceeding and its legal implications, but considering we seem to be having a positive impact, we would encourage you to step up your efforts in support of Volha and the hospice ahead of 14 December.
Thank you so much for your continued support!
Children’s hospice at risk, director targeted
Volha Vialichka, the director of the Belarusian Hrodna children’s hospice, is being targeted by the authorities following her role as an independent observer during the disputed August presidential elections in Belarus, and her public criticism of the authorities. The hospice, which provides vital care to terminally ill children, now risks closure as a result of the harassment of its director.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
The harassment against Volha Vialichka and the targeting of the Hrodna’s children hospice that she directs comes in the context of a drastic deterioration in the human rights situation in Belarus. During the electoral campaign period and following the presidential election on 9 August, there have been mass peaceful protests including against the widely disputed official results. Throughout, the authorities have engaged in an escalating campaign against the opposition and all dissenting voices. Thousands of people have been arbitrarily arrested by police, an overwhelming majority of them peaceful protesters or bystanders, and many apprehended in abduction-style arrest by masked plain-clothed men. Amnesty has been calling for the immediate released of all those detained for exercising their right to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression, and an end to all other human rights violations, including the dispersal of peaceful assemblies, mass arrests and the widespread ill-treatment and torture of detainees (see: https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2020/08/belarus-mounting-evidence-of-a-campaign-of-widespread-torture-of-peaceful-protesters/)
