Supreme Court upholds registration denial to opposition youth group

• 8.10.2007, 18:12

The Supreme Court of Belarus on Monday rejected an appeal filed by an opposition youth group called Malady Front (Young Front) against registration denial.

The ruling is yet another setback for the group that lost a similar appeal in the Minsk City Court this past August.

The justice ministry linked its decision to deny registration to Malady Front to a clause in the organization’s charter that allowed foreign citizens to join the organization, which the ministry said would be in violation of regulations. It also found that the charter ran counter to regulations governing mass events.

While explaining its ruling, the Supreme Court said that some of Malady Front’s founders had faced administrative and criminal prosecution and hence cannot act as founders of a non-governmental organization.

Speaking at the hearing, Anastasiya Loyka, a representative of the group, described the rationale as “discriminatory.” “These people were convicted and punished. They were convicted for acting on behalf of an unregistered organization. Nevertheless, we are denied the opportunity to obtain registration yet again, from which criminal cases stem. This is a vicious circle,” she said.

Malady Front plans to take the case to international organizations, in particular the UN Human Rights Committee.

The organization was denied registration twice this year, in May and July. The absence of legal status has allowed authorities to prosecute some of its members under Article 193-1 of the Criminal Code.