rferl--2020-09-12--Pakistani Police Release Journalist Accused Of Spreading Hateful Content Against Army

Police in Pakistan 's port city of Karachi have released a local journalist accused of spreading hateful content against the country 's militay on social media as a court reprimanded the police for overstepping their mandate , a lawyer for journalist Bilal Farooqi said .
“ The court asked the police if a FIR ( first information report ) does not stand ground , who has given you authority to pick up people from home , ” Ghulam Shabbir , Farooqi 's lawyer told Reuters on September 12 .
Farooqi , who works for the English-language Express Tribune newspaper , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 11 .
`` Through his [ social media ] posts , Bilal Farooqi defamed the Pakistan Army and anti-state elements used these posts for their vested interests , '' a police report seen by Reuters said .
The report also alleged that his online activity spread religious hatred and incited mutiny against the military .
Shabbir said he expected the police report to be submitted within a week and for the case to be discharged .
`` The charges against me are so absurd , that I am spreading religious hatred and defaming @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , '' Farooqi told Reuters before his court appearance .
Earlier , Farooqi 's family told local media that police seized his mobile phone during a search of their home .
Journalists and press freedom advocates have accused the Pakistani military and its agencies of pressuring media outlets to smother critical coverage .
Farooqi 's arrest and subsequent release is the latest in a series of such moves against journalists who have been critical of the government or military .
It also comes days after Prime Minister Imran Khan insisted that Pakistan has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ country 's cybercrime law that critics say contains vague language , which can be used to criminalize basic online activities .
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights earlier this week expressed concern at instances of incitement to violence against journalists and human rights activists .
`` We have raised our concerns directly with the government and we have urged immediate , concrete steps to ensure the protection of journalists and human rights defenders who have been subjected to threats , '' it said in a statement .
Based on reporting by Reuters @ @


rferl--2020-09-13--Amid Fresh Arrests, Belarusian Ministry Brands Women Protesters 'Unfeminine'

Belarusian authorities battling an unprecedented month of protests have described women who gathered for a peaceful rally in the capital , Minsk , on September 12 to oppose five-term President Alyaksandr Lukashenka as `` aggressive '' and `` unfeminine . ''
The women 's march was the latest of the post-Soviet country 's daily protests since officials declared Lukashenka the landslide winner of an August 9 presidential election that critics say was fraudulent , unleashing massive shows of opposition in the streets .
The Interior Ministry announced in anticipation of more anti-Lukashenka protests on September 13 that it had increased @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to prevent illegal action by protesting citizens . ''
It said police were `` operating in a heavy security mode . ''
By midday , some of the first reports had already emerged of would-be demonstrators carrying the opposition 's red-and-white banners being hauled off into unmarked minibuses by unidentified individuals in balaclavas with weapons and truncheons .
In a separate statement earlier in the day , the Interior Ministry appeared to play up purported gatherings the previous day aimed at calming tensions in the country while downplaying anti-government demonstrations .
It said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had taken part in mass events in three regions `` in support of peace , security , and tranquility . ''
Meanwhile , it said , the number of people at 12 protest actions in five regions `` did not exceed 1,700 people . ''
The ministry said 114 people had been detained at the protests , 99 of them in the capital .
Police arrested dozens of the women who took part in the Minsk march and at least two journalists covering the event .
The Interior Ministry 's press department went @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` aggressive . ''
`` It 's a shame to watch : screams , screeching , crush ...
The behavior is unfeminine , '' it said .
Lukashenka , who has ruled the country for 26 years , has refused to hold talks with his opponents , and rebuffed calls to hold new elections .
Many of the most prominent leaders of the past month 's opposition activities have been women , including exiled presidential candidate Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya and detained members of the opposition Coordination Council like Maryya Kalesnikava and Lilia Vlasova .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` remain peaceful '' and urged international support to encourage a peaceful resolution to Belarus 's `` deep political crisis . ''
The second-largest grouping in the European Parliament , the Socialists and Democrats ( S & D ) , this week nominated the “ brave women of Belarus ” -- Tsikhanouskaya , Kalesnikava , and Veranika Tsapkala , another opposition leader -- for this year 's Sakharov Prize for human rights activities .
Tsikhanouskaya fled to Lithuania days after the election amid reports she might be arrested , while Tsapkala and her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reportedly tore up her passport to avoid being forced out of the country after being snatched off the street in Minsk , and remains in Belarusian detention .
In a press release announcing the nomination , Kati Piri , the S & D group 's vice president , said that `` we are firmly convinced that this year ’ s Sakharov Prize should honor the brave women of Belarus fighting for freedom and democracy in their country .
We are particularly inspired by the three women who spearheaded the grassroots opposition campaign for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an attempt to unseat autocratic dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka . ''
The Belarusian Association of Journalists and former Belarusian presidential candidate Alyaksandr Milinkievich were awarded the prize in 2004 and 2006 , respectively .
Teachers from the language department of Belarusian State University in Minsk on September 12 issued a video appeal for freedom of speech .
`` Fear is bad , violence is bad , lies are bad .
You can ’ t pretend like nothing ’ s happening , '' the appeal , which includes nine speakers from the school , says @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have our beliefs and express them , we have the right to support each other .
Students , we are with you ... '' More than a dozen students were detained at a September 5 protest near the school 's language department .
But anti-government cracks have also opened among segments of the population , like blue-collar workers , where Lukashenka has traditionally sought vocal public support in the past .
The strike committee at one of the world 's largest processors and exporters of potash fertilizers , Belaruskali , said via Telegram @ @ @ @ @ @ @ members , Raman Leonchyk , had been detained and was at a local police station .
Lukashenka and Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet in the Black Sea resort of Sochi on September 14 for their first face-to-face talks since the Belarusian leader publicly pleaded for help from Moscow to put down the demonstrations .
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said their talks would focus on energy cooperation and bilateral ties .
Putin has pressed a reluctant Lukashenka on closer military and political integration between their countries -- including by promising military assistance under @ @ @ @ @ @ @ police force -- but has so far cautiously backed the embattled Belarusian strongman .
Russia 's Defense Ministry said on September 13 that its troops would participate alongside Belarusian soldiers in the annual Slavic Brotherhood tactical exercise at Belarus 's Brest training range from September 14 September 25 .
A Russian paratrooper division will take part in drills beginning on September 14 , it said .
Vyasna human rights center director Ales Byalyatski warned this week that Lukashenka would seek to intensify detentions and threats ahead of the Putin meeting `` to show @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and he is in control of the situation , '' adding , `` but so far repression has had the opposite effect . ''
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun said on September 11 that Russia risked losing the friendship of the Belarusian people if the Kremlin continued to back Lukashenka .
With reporting by RFE/RL 's Belarus Service , Interfax , and TASS

MINSK – Tens of thousands of Belarusians jammed the streets of Minsk and other cities and towns, as opposition protesters pressed their nearly five-week campaign to pressure President Alyaksandr Lukashenka to call new elections.
The Interior Ministry reported more than 400 arrests in the September 13 protests. Among them was RFE/RL photographer Uladz Hrydzin, who was with another photographer in a bar when a group of people wearing balaclavas detained them and confiscated their equipment.
Hrydzin, who was recently stripped of foreign-media accreditation, was detained just before he sent photos of the protest. He is due to appear in court on September 14.
The turnout in the Belarusian capital and elsewhere was the latest indication that opposition activists, and many average Belarusians, have been undaunted by thousands of arrests, beatings, and other intimidation tactics used by Belarusian security forces.
Chanting, "Long live Belarus!" and. "Sasha, you’re fired!", crowds packed one of Minsk’s main boulevards, waving the red-and-white opposition flags and carrying signs that taunted Lukashenka and government officials. One sign carried by protesters showed a photograph of Lukashenka and Russian leader Vladimir Putin and read: "Tell me who your friends are and I will tell you who you are."
Lukashenka, who has ruled the country for 26 years, has refused to hold talks with his opponents, and rebuffed calls to hold new elections. The United Nations has estimated up to 6,000 people have been subjected to detentions and, in some cases, torture by Belarusian security agents.
Lukashenka made no public comment, or any public appearances, on September 13, one day before he was scheduled to fly to Russia to meet Putin for talks.
Authorities did not immediately release any estimate of the crowds; in the past, however, the public figures have been exceedingly low. The human rights group Vyasna, meanwhile, estimated the turnout at more than 150,000.
Trucks and some armored vehicles belonging to law enforcement agencies could be seen parked along some central Minsk streets, and, ahead of the demonstration, the Interior Ministry said it had increased police and troop numbers "to prevent illegal action by protesting citizens."
Some activists reported Internet outages in Minsk, a possible repeat of what happened in the hours after the August 9 election. Activists said the outages then were a tactic aimed at shutting down independent news reporting.
Helmeted security forces were reported to be detaining some marchers in parts of Minsk on September 13, and later in the day, masked riot police were seen marching, and carrying, detained protesters into police vans. The Interior Ministry reported that more than 400 people had been detained by nightfall.
The ministry also said "around 250 people" had been detained a day earlier, for offenses like displaying the banned red-and-white flag and banners, "including an insulting one."
Sizable protests also took place on September 13 in the southeastern city of Homel, and in the western border city of Brest, where activists reportedly carried a banner that read, "Hello to Khabarovsk from Brest" -- a reference to the weeks of anti-government protests that have occurred in the Russian Far Eastern city of Khabarovsk.
Brest police deployed a water cannon at one point to disperse protesters. It was unclear if there were detentions or injuries from the confrontation.
"Participants in the unauthorized mass gathering blocked traffic and public transport and created a threat to the safety of road users," Interior Ministry spokeswoman Olga Chemodanova said in a post on Telegram.
A day earlier, hundreds of women marched through Minsk, confronting masked riot police and security agents. The Interior Ministry said 114 people had been detained around the country, 99 of them in the capital, in connection with those demonstrations.
The Interior Ministry's press department, meanwhile, described the women protesters as "aggressive."
"It's a shame to watch: screams, screeching..." the ministry said. "Such behavior is unfeminine."
Many of Belarus’s most prominent opposition leaders are women, including exiled presidential candidate Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya and detained members of the Coordination Council like Maryya Kalesnikava and Lilia Vlasova.
Tsikhanouskaya, who fled to Lithuania after the election amid reports she might be arrested, appealed for protesters to "remain peaceful" and urged international support to encourage a peaceful resolution to the "deep political crisis."
Kalesnikava reportedly tore up her passport to avoid being forced out of the country after being snatched off the street in Minsk, and remains in Belarusian detention. Another prominent leader is Veranika Tsapkala, who went to Ukraine and then Poland along with her ex-diplomat husband.
Tsikhanouskaya, Kalesnikava, and Tsapkala have been nominated for this year's Sakharov Prize for human rights activities.
At the Belarusian State University in Minsk, teachers from the languages department issued a video appeal for freedom of speech. More than a dozen students were detained last week at a protest near the school's languages department.
"Fear is bad, violence is bad, lies are bad. You can’t pretend like nothing’s happening," the appeal, which included nine speakers, said.
Lukashenka has long had a sizable base of support, particularly from the country’s older population, many of whom are nostalgic for the Soviet period. But cracks have also opened among segments of the population, like blue-collar workers, where Lukashenka has traditionally sought vocal public support in the past.
The strike committee at one of the world's largest processors and exporters of potash fertilizer, Belaruskali, said via Telegram on September 13 that one of its members had been detained and was at a local police station.
Lukashenka, meanwhile, was scheduled to travel to Russia to meet President Vladimir Putin on September 14. Though the two have spoken more than five times by phone since August 9, the meeting, to be held in Black Sea resort of Sochi, will be the first face-to-face talks since Lukashenka publicly pleaded for help from Moscow to put down the demonstrations.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said their talks would focus on energy cooperation and bilateral ties.
Putin has pressed a reluctant Lukashenka on closer military and political integration between their countries -- including by promising military assistance under a bilateral military pact, including a police force -- but has largely given only tepid support.
Opposition websites and social-media supporters have adopted the slogan, "We won't let him sell the country" ahead of the Sochi meeting.
Russia's Defense Ministry said on September 13 that its troops would participate alongside Belarusian soldiers in the annual Slavic Brotherhood tactical exercise at a training range in western Belarus.
A Russian paratrooper division will take part in the drills beginning on September 14, it said.
Ales Byalyatski, the director of the Vyasna human rights center, warned that Lukashenka would seek to intensify detentions and threats ahead of the Putin meeting "to show the Kremlin that the protests are abating and he is in control of the situation."
“But so far repression has had the opposite effect,” he said.
With reporting by Current Time, Interfax, and TASS


rferl--2020-09-13--U.K. Lawmaker: New Trial In Iran Of Dual-National Aid Worker Said To Be Delayed

A British parliamentary deputy said on September 13 that the husband of British-Iranian aid worker Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe , who has been imprisoned in Iran for four years , has told her that his wife 's latest trial has been postponed .
Parliamentarian Tulip Siddiq , who represents Zaghari-Ratcliffe 's London-area home district of Hampstead and Kilburn , did not offer details of any possible reasons for the delay .
`` She is relieved , frustrated , stressed and angry .
Once again she ’ s being treated like a bargaining chip , '' Siddiq tweeted .
She said more information @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Iran 's judiciary , which routinely withholds key information on trials , has not issued a public statement on the charges or issued any news on a postponement .
But they are said to be reviving old charges of propaganda against the regime , possibly in connection with a suggestion three years ago by then-Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson that Zaghari-Ratcliffe was `` teaching people journalism . ''
The 41-year-old Zaghari-Ratcliffe -- a project manager with the Thomson Reuters Foundation -- was detained at Tehran airport after a family visit in 2016 and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to overthrow Iran 's government .
Amnesty International called the process a “ deeply unfair trial.
” She was temporarily released in March , amid measures to halt the spread of COVID-19 , but not allowed to leave the country and reportedly remains at her parents ' home under house arrest .
Iran 's state television cited an unnamed official as saying she was summoned to a Revolutionary Court in Tehran on September and informed of a new charge against her .
Britain has demanded Zaghari-Ratcliffe 's release and that of other dual @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not recognize dual citizenship .
Britain 's Foreign Office has called Iran 's action in the case `` indefensible and unacceptable . ''
Thomson Reuters Foundation CEO Antonio Zappulla condemned the new charge , saying it would prolong Zaghari-Ratcliffe ’ s `` inhumane and unjust ordeal . ''
The new indictment against Zaghari-Ratcliffe comes as London and Tehran negotiate the release of hundreds of millions of dollars frozen by Britain .
The payment was made by Tehran more than 40 years ago for Chieftain tanks .
Officials in London and Tehran have denied @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a repayment deal .
However , the British daily The Guardian reported last week that Defense Minister Ben Wallace had acknowledged he was `` actively '' seeking to repay a debt to Iran to secure the release of Zaghari-Ratcliffe and other Iranian-British detainees .
Britain is believed to owe as much as $ 530 million to the Iranian government arising from the Chieftain contract .
Zaghari-Ratcliffe 's husband , Richard Ratcliffe , said in a statement this week that `` It has become increasingly clear the past months that Nazanin is a hostage @ @ @ @ @ @ @ debt .
It is important that the UK government does everything to protect her and others as Iran ’ s hostage diplomacy continues to escalate . ''

A polytechnic school in Russia’s Tatarstan, a region some 900 kilometers east of Moscow, is using manufacturing facilities that are part of a nearby special economic zone to assemble Iranian attack drones and are increasingly turning to underage students as laborers, many of whom often work in exploitative conditions.
The revelations at Alabuga Polytechnic University raise troubling implications about the lengths that Russian authorities are going to in order to boost the war effort and how the advanced Iranian weaponry -- which is increasingly used to bombard Ukrainian cities and has only recently begun to be manufactured inside Russia -- could contribute to escalating tensions and rising civilian casualties.
The use of underage students as drone factory workers and the details of the manufacturing facilities were first reported by Russian independent media outlets Protokol and Razvorot, which published a series of investigations in July.
Since then, RFE/RL’s Idel.Realities has spoken with students who describe grueling working conditions and interviewed dozens of parents whose children have been enrolled at Alabuga Polytechnic University -- some as young at 15 -- who say that their children were forced to work exceedingly long hours, often without proper breaks or meals, and under hostile conditions that have deeply affected their mental health.
“My son enrolled and 2 1/2 months later he called for me to take him away,” Zhanna, who asked to be identified only by her first name to protect against reprisals for speaking about the operation, told RFE/RL. “He said to me on the phone, ‘Come and get me or I’ll die,’ so I picked him up immediately.”
Zhanna, who asked that her underage son’s name also not be used, says that she sent him from Nizhny Novgorod to study at Alabuga Polytechnic University in 2022 because of its reputation as a leading technical institution inside Russia.
The school offered students -- often between the ages of 15-18 -- an opportunity to get vocational training as part of a dual program that combines a classroom education with practical work experience. Students were also promised an opportunity to work and earn a locally competitive salary of up to 70,000 rubles ($700) a month as part of the work experience program that could further their career growth.
Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's full-scale invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war in Ukraine, click here.
But, instead, those enrolled were encouraged and in some cases pressured into working at the drone facility, where the salaries of the mostly underage laborers are contingent on meeting tough production quotas.
“This is a textbook definition of what constitutes exploitation,” Sergei Podsytnik, an investigative journalist at Protokol who worked on the series of reports, told RFE/RL. “[Students] assemble drones, with the work taking priority over their studies.”
The pressure to fulfill these quotas has allegedly led to strenuous back-to-back days -- with some shifts lasting up to 15 hours -- with little time for sleep or adequate sustenance. Overtime work is often unpaid, further highlighting potential labor violations. Exhausted students also reported not always meeting their quotas, which led to them not earning the salary initially promised by the school. Many students came from disadvantaged backgrounds and relied on their earnings to cover costs for tuition, room, and board and would send the remainder home.
Other parents, such as Marina, said she decided to take her daughter out of the program when she discovered that she was working in apparent unsafe conditions and that staff from the school had instructed students not to tell their parents about the drone assembly work.
“This was the last straw for me,” Marina, who also asked for her identity to be concealed, told RFE/RL. “This is a dangerous production process that involves dangerous chemicals. They also forbid the kids from telling everything to their parents.”
RFE/RL sent multiple requests for comment to various staff and administrators at Alabuga Polytechnic University but received no replies.
Making Iranian Drones In Russia
The complicated and concerning dynamic at Alabuga Polytechnic University stems from growing military cooperation between Iran and Russia that has accelerated since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Iran has said it provided drones to Russia before the start of the war, but not since. However, U.S. intelligence officials have warned for months of continued deliveries and deepening cooperation between Moscow and Tehran, saying the two sides were exploring how to set up a manufacturing plant for Iranian drones inside Russia.
According to The Wall Street Journal, an Iranian delegation visited Yelabuga in Tatarstan on January 5, touring a potential site for such a factory at the Alabuga special economic zone close to Alabuga Polytechnic University. U.S. officials released satellite images in April of the plant being built.
Russia already possesses an array of unarmed aerial vehicles, or UAVs, which are used mainly for surveillance and artillery spotting, but has turned increasingly to Tehran for attack drones.
After being forced to abandon Ukrainian territory that its troops captured in the early stretches of the war, Moscow shifted to a strategy of relentless air assaults on Ukrainian cities. These attacks often rely on a combination of cruise missiles and self-detonating drones packed with explosives to knock out electricity and running water for the civilian population in Ukraine.
So far, Iran has provided Russia mostly with so-called "suicide" drones, known as the Shahed-136, that contain a modest amount of explosives that can detonate when the drones crash into targets, military experts say.
In acquiring its own domestic assembly line, Russia could dramatically increase its stockpile of the relatively inexpensive but highly destructive weapons systems.
WATCH: Russia has resorted to using Shahed-136 drones from Iran in its war on Ukraine. Ukraine says it's already downed many of the drones, which work by slamming into their intended target, laden with explosives. Ordinary Ukrainians say they can already recognize the sound of the drones, which use two-stroke engines like lawnmowers or motorbikes. Iran has denied supplying the drones to Russia.
The arrangement also offers substantial economic and political benefits for Iran, which has sought to portray itself as neutral in the Ukraine war. The appearance of Iranian-made drones over Ukrainian cities, however, has triggered threats of new economic sanctions from the West. The United States, the European Union, and the United Kingdom have also all issued rules in recent months designed to cut off the flow of drone components to Russia and Iran.
The Washington Post reported in November 2022, citing unnamed U.S. intelligence officials, that the agreement to deliver Iranian drone schematics and materials for manufacture in Russia resulted from Iranian leaders believing that the arrangement would allow Tehran to avert new sanctions.
Foreign Recruitment And Patriotic Education
Alabuga Polytechnic University is formally not a college. All of its students are officially enrolled at nearby Yelabuga Polytechnic College, with the Alabuga institution existing on paper as a specialized program for students looking to break into high-tech industries.
Currently, about 1,000 students are studying at Alabuga Polytechnic University, with several hundred of them -- most of whom are between the ages of 15 and 17 -- involved in assembling the Iranian drones.
In addition to the work on the drones, there are other signs that point to blurred lines in Russia between the education system and the country’s military amid the war in Ukraine.
According to current and former Alabuga Polytechnic University students, team-building and organized extracurricular activities through the school often take on a “patriotic” character that may be designed to expose students to official government narratives of international events or echo talking points from state television.
Organized paintball games have become a mainstay for students, especially first-year arrivals, in which they are encouraged to compete against one another and then play together against more experienced outside players. Teachers and administration officials regularly refer to paintball as being part of a “patriotic” education needed to complement the technical aspect of their studies.
In one instance, a group of new students competed in paintball as Soviet soldiers against outside players who were dressed as troops from Nazi Germany in a capture-the-flag competition meant to simulate the World War II battle of Stalingrad. According to one student, the Nazi flag contained the compass symbol used by the NATO military alliance instead of the swastika used by Nazi Germany.
Other instances of political teachings from staff are more direct. In a recording obtained by RFE/RL from June 16, a senior administrator can be heard telling the teenagers that NATO launched a hybrid war against Russia back in 2011 and that it has slowly become more overt. The man then goes on to tell students that their hard work and exceeding long days at the drone factory are part of a nationwide struggle against the West and that their patriotism will be rewarded.
Several students and parents identified the man in the recording as Timur Shagivaleev, the director-general of the special economic zone where Alabuga Polytechnic University and the drone factory operate.
Shagivaleev did not respond to RFE/RL’s request for comment.
The man in the recording then goes on to tell students not to take holidays and to continue working “even if it's mom's birthday,” before ending his speech with, “Long live our great country.”
WATCH: Amid a new wave of Russian drone attacks on Ukraine, analysts in Kyiv are gaining useful intelligence from a collection of downed Russian aerial weapons. They have been studying the remains of Iranian Shahed drones and Russian Kinzhal missiles, among others.
Multiple current and former students told RFE/RL that students who work in the drone factory are often praised by staff, while those who have refused or asked to be reassigned due to the high workload are often publicly shamed. In some instances -- according to recordings heard by RFE/RL -- staff even encourage students to bully others who are not deemed “patriotic” enough.
According to Protokol and Razvorot’s investigations, Alabuga Polytechnic University has also turned toward recruiting foreign students to enroll. The majority of them come from African countries, but also from Central Asia and Azerbaijan, where they are promised “world class” salaries as part of the dual-track world experience program.
However, these foreign students are then given low-skill and menial tasks around the campus and the special economic zone, such as janitorial work, and are also paid lower salaries than initially promised.
Written by Reid Standish based on reporting by RFE/RL’s Idel.Realities


rferl--2020-09-13--Russian Film Takes Jury Prize In Venice

Russian Film Takes Jury Prize In Venice

Russian director Andrei Konchalovsky 's retelling of Khrushchev-era oppression around a 1962 massacre has won Special Jury Prize honors at the 77th Venice International Film Festival .
The 83-year-old filmmaker has described his black-and-white film , Dear Comrade , as a `` fairytale '' exploration of the `` purity '' of postwar Soviet characters , many of whom he says are `` good and bad at the same time . ''
It stars Konchalovsky 's wife , Yulia Vysotskaya , who was born in the Novocherkassk region where the killing of 26 striking workers under Nikita Khrushchev at the center @ @ @ @ @ @ @ half a century ago .
Vysotskaya , who has described senior Soviet officials as believing they were `` creating something ... good for mankind , '' plays a diehard communist and war veteran who is torn between her loyalties to the Communist Party and her daughter .
Variety magazine called it a film with a `` seriousness of ... intent and ... pristine craft , '' but with deadpan humor that takes aim at `` bureaucrats and military men nervously passing the buck as far as it will go . ''
It had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ top-prize laureate in Venice .
But the Golden Lion award instead went to Nomadland , a film by U.S.-based Chinese director Chloe Zhao about a widow who escapes life in a struggling Nevada mining town by living in her van and taking temporary jobs along the way .
The Venice event is the first major film festival to go ahead in a live setting -- instead of mostly remote video -- since the coronavirus pandemic shut down much of Europe in March .

Russian director Andrei Konchalovsky's retelling of Khrushchev-era oppression around a 1962 massacre has won Special Jury Prize honors at the 77th Venice International Film Festival.
The 83-year-old filmmaker has described his black-and-white film, Dear Comrade, as a "fairytale" exploration of the "purity" of postwar Soviet characters, many of whom he says are "good and bad at the same time."
It stars Konchalovsky's wife, Yulia Vysotskaya, who was born in the Novocherkassk region where the killing of 26 striking workers under Nikita Khrushchev at the center of the film happened more than a half a century ago.
Vysotskaya, who has described senior Soviet officials as believing they were "creating something...good for mankind," plays a diehard communist and war veteran who is torn between her loyalties to the Communist Party and her daughter.
Variety magazine called it a film with a "seriousness of...intent and...pristine craft," but with deadpan humor that takes aim at "bureaucrats and military men nervously passing the buck as far as it will go."
It had been tipped by some as a possible top-prize laureate in Venice.
But the Golden Lion award instead went to Nomadland, a film by U.S.-based Chinese director Chloe Zhao about a widow who escapes life in a struggling Nevada mining town by living in her van and taking temporary jobs along the way.
The Venice event is the first major film festival to go ahead in a live setting -- instead of mostly remote video -- since the coronavirus pandemic shut down much of Europe in March.
Based on reporting by Reuters


rferl--2020-09-13--Kazakh Rally Urges Toqaev To Implement Promised Reforms, Free Political Prisoners

A dozen or so speakers are leading an authorized rally in Kazakhstan 's largest city , Almaty , on September 13 to call for political reforms and to demand that they be allowed to form a new party in Central Asia 's most prosperous former Soviet republic .
Backers of the unregistered Democratic Party have publicly argued against selling Kazakh land to foreigners and urged an amnesty on loan payments , called for the release of political prisoners , and warned of creeping Chinese influence and expansion in Kazakhstan .
Virtually all of the participants and gaggle of journalists have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ medics patrol the area and take people 's temperatures as part of anti-COVID-19 measures .
WATCH : Live Stream Of The Rally In Almaty ( RFE/RL 's Kazakh Service ) But authorities have not been intervening as the speakers take turns challenging President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev to carry out democratic and economic reforms , and a few dozen supporters have gathered at Shoqan Valikhanov Square in central Almaty .
Demonstrators have been chanting slogans demanding freedom for dissident poet Aron Atabek and others , and , in a sign of the ongoing tensions with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ envoy to Nur-Sultan to leave the country .
Opposition groups in Kazakhstan have long called for direct elections of governors across the country , a move that has consistently been rejected by the government .
The Kazakh economy has been hit hard by the double whammy of a drop in oil prices and the coronavirus pandemic , which has choked off growth and forced many businesses to be shuttered .
The demonstrators in Almaty on September 13 have also questioned the powerful ongoing role of longtime President Nursultan Nazarbaev , who stepped down @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2019 but not before carving out key posts for himself .
Nazarbaev continues to lead the ruling Nur-Otan party and the country 's secretive Security Council .
Smaller protests were held in the southern Kazakh city of Shymkent and in the northern city of Aktobe on September 13 .
Under growing pressure at home and abroad for his government 's failure to carry out reforms , President Toqaev has called for a `` reset '' of the state structures managing the oil-rich Central Asian nation but has yet to follow through on that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ joint session of both parliamentary chambers , the Mazhilis and the Senate , Toqaev said on September 1 that a new state body called the Agency for Strategic Planning and Reforms would soon begin carrying out its function to boost `` necessary reforms , '' while a second state agency will be created to support economic competition .
Both will report directly to the president .
The changes , Toqaev said , include direct elections for governors in villages starting next year , as well as hiving off the Agency for Emergency Situations @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a freer hand in responding to the coronavirus pandemic in the face of protests by citizens demanding compensation for losses caused by the outbreak .
Local human rights campaigners recently identified nine individuals they said are political prisoners being held by Kazakh authorities , including the chairwoman of an Almaty-based rights group .
The unregistered Democratic Party of Kazakhstan is led by journalist Zhanbolat Mamay .

ALMATY -- Dozens of activists rallied in Kazakhstan's commercial capital calling for political reforms and to demand they be allowed to form a new political party.
The September 13 rally, organized by the unregistered Democratic Party, also targeted government policies allowing the sale of Kazakh land to foreigners, and with speakers warning of creeping Chinese influence in the country.
Police did not intervene to halt the event, which saw speakers criticizing President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev and calling on him to carry out democratic and economic reforms.
Police and medics were seen patrolling the area and taking people's temperatures as part of anti-COVID-19 measures.
Demonstrators also chanted slogans demanding freedom for a dissident poet, and, in a sign of the ongoing tensions with neighboring China, calling for Beijing's ambassador to leave the country.
The demonstrators also criticized longtime ruler Nursultan Nazarbaev, who stepped down as president in 2019 after nearly 30 years in power in 2019.
Despite formally leaving the presidency, Nazarbaev continues to lead the ruling party and the country's secretive Security Council, and wields wide behind-the-scenes influence.
Founded by former journalist Zhanbolat Mamai, the Democratic Party has been repeatedly thwarted by authorities in its efforts to become a registered party.
The group had sought to organize its first congress in February, an important legal step in the registration process, but then canceled it because of arrests and detentions of party activists.
"Why can't we criticize the authorities?" Mamai told the crowd. "If they do not fulfill the people's demands, let them leave! If they do not listen to people's problems, they are not worthy of being leaders."
The Kazakh economy has been hit hard by the drop in global oil prices and the coronavirus pandemic, which has choked off growth and forced many businesses to be shuttered.
Under growing pressure at home and abroad, Toqaev has called for changes to two important government agencies that play important roles in managing the economy.
And in a speech to a joint session of parliament earlier this month, Toqaev proposed allowing direct elections for local governors starting next year. He called for splitting the federal emergency situations agency away from the Interior Ministry, to allow it a freer hand in responding to the coronavirus pandemic.
Smaller protests were held in the southern city of Shymkent and in the northern city of Aktobe on September 13.


rferl--2020-09-13--Latvian Prime Minister: Navalny Poisoning Shows EU Must Open Its Eyes About Russia

Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins says the poisoning of Russian opposition leader Aleksei Navalny shows that the European Union must get more realistic about its dealings with Russia .
`` What still has to happen to see that this is a Russia that is dangerous for Europe and for our European values ?
” Karins said in an interview published on September 13 by German broadcaster ARD .
`` We must finally open our eyes . ''
Karins said targeted sanctions under consideration by the EU are only symbolic , and therefore is reiterating his call for Germany to stop @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Other Eastern European countries -- Poland , Estonia , and Lithuania -- are pressing for a halt to the project , and Karins said since the Navalny poisoning , it ’ s no longer possible to ignore these calls .
Latvia believes that Russia 's motive is to increase German dependence on Russian natural gas , Karins said , accusing Moscow of using Europe 's reliance on gas as a political weapon .
Some European politicians say that the EU must be use caution when dealing with Russia on international conflicts because it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ UN Security Council to block important resolutions .
Russia also is a major ally of Syria , and the EU needs its cooperation to ensure deliveries of humanitarian aid .
Karins nevertheless said in the ARD interview that Russia today is not the Russia that many once believed would move toward democracy .
Europeans must recognize that the Russian government is far from democracy , he said .
Berlin has been facing increasing calls for a sharper response to the poisoning .
Some opposition politicians have called for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline @ @ @ @ @ @ @ project is more than 90 percent complete .
It has become controversial because it would largely reroute natural gas to Europe around Ukraine , depriving Kyiv of billions of dollars in annual transit fees .
The United States opposes the project on the grounds that it strengthens the Kremlin 's grip on the European energy market and punishes Ukraine , which is battling Russia-backed separatists in its eastern provinces .
European vessels laying the pipeline halted their work in December following the first round of U.S. sanctions that specifically targeted their activity .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ its own ships , but the United States has taken steps to stop that by widening the sanctions beyond vessels to any company working on the project .
Navalny remains in a hospital in Berlin after German doctors concluded “ without doubt ” that he was poisoned with a military nerve agent from the Soviet-designed Novichok group .
The 44-year-old anti-corruption campaigner was flown to Germany on August 22 , two days after falling ill on a flight in Siberia .
Germany has demanded that Russia explain the affair , but Russia denies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ share the evidence that led to the poisoning conclusion .

Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins says the poisoning of Russian opposition leader Aleksei Navalny shows that the European Union must get more realistic about its dealings with Russia.
"What still has to happen to see that this is a Russia that is dangerous for Europe and for our European values?” Karins said in an interview published on September 13 by German broadcaster ARD. "We must finally open our eyes."
Karins said targeted sanctions under consideration by the EU are only symbolic, and therefore is reiterating his call for Germany to stop the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project.
Other Eastern European countries -- Poland, Estonia, and Lithuania -- are pressing for a halt to the project, and Karins said since the Navalny poisoning, it’s no longer possible to ignore these calls.
Latvia believes that Russia's motive is to increase German dependence on Russian natural gas, Karins said, accusing Moscow of using Europe's reliance on gas as a political weapon.
Some European politicians say that the EU must be use caution when dealing with Russia on international conflicts because it can use its veto power on the UN Security Council to block important resolutions. Russia also is a major ally of Syria, and the EU needs its cooperation to ensure deliveries of humanitarian aid.
Karins nevertheless said in the ARD interview that Russia today is not the Russia that many once believed would move toward democracy. Europeans must recognize that the Russian government is far from democracy, he said.
Berlin has been facing increasing calls for a sharper response to the poisoning. Some opposition politicians have called for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline to be canceled.
The controversial pipeline project is more than 90 percent complete. It has become controversial because it would largely reroute natural gas to Europe around Ukraine, depriving Kyiv of billions of dollars in annual transit fees.
The United States opposes the project on the grounds that it strengthens the Kremlin's grip on the European energy market and punishes Ukraine, which is battling Russia-backed separatists in its eastern provinces.
European vessels laying the pipeline halted their work in December following the first round of U.S. sanctions that specifically targeted their activity.
Russia is hoping to complete it using its own ships, but the United States has taken steps to stop that by widening the sanctions beyond vessels to any company working on the project.
Navalny remains in a hospital in Berlin after German doctors concluded “without doubt” that he was poisoned with a military nerve agent from the Soviet-designed Novichok group. The 44-year-old anti-corruption campaigner was flown to Germany on August 22, two days after falling ill on a flight in Siberia.
Germany has demanded that Russia explain the affair, but Russia denies any involvement and has pressed Germany to share the evidence that led to the poisoning conclusion.
Based on reporting by ARD


rferl--2020-09-13--Qatari Ruler Helps Kabul, Taliban Envoys Kick Off Day Two Of Intra-Afghan Talks

Qatar 's ruler helped launch the second day of long-awaited Afghan peace talks in Doha on September 13 between representatives of the Afghan government and Taliban militants , but reports of ongoing clashes back in Afghanistan were a reminder of obstacles ahead .
The first day included a formal ceremony and efforts to agree on a framework and other broad aspects of the first direct negotiations between the two sides since a breakthrough agreement between the United States and the hard-line Taliban in February .
But the Afghan Defense Ministry said that , even hours after the official start of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were still fighting in many places in Afghanistan .
`` With the start of intra-Afghan talks , we were expecting the Taliban to reduce the number of their attacks , but unfortunately their attacks are still going in high numbers , '' Reuters quoted Fawad Aman , a ministry spokesman , as saying .
Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani , who is hosting the negotiations in Doha , met with both sides on September 13 and wished them success , according to Qatari state media .
The peace talks could quickly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cease-fire .
Abdullah Abdullah , the country 's former chief executive officer who is heading an Afghan negotiating team that includes members of the opposition and individuals outside the government , told AFP that the Taliban could offer a truce in exchange for the release of more of their jailed fighters .
`` This could be one of their ideas or one of their demands , '' Abdullah , who is also chairman of Afghanistan ’ s High Council for National Reconciliation , said . '
A Momentous Occasion' At a ceremony opening @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Afghan government and allies , including the United States , called for a cease-fire .
But the Taliban did not mention a truce as they came to the negotiating table.. Abdullah said during the opening ceremony that history will remember the start of the talks `` as the end of the war and suffering of our people . ''
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the start of the talks was a `` momentous occasion , '' telling participants that they carry `` a great responsibility '' and an opportunity to overcome @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said that Afghanistan should `` have an Islamic system in which all tribes and ethnicities of the country find themselves without any discrimination and live their lives in love and brotherhood . ''
`` Negotiations may have problems but should move forward with patience , '' he said .
Washington helped broker the on-and-off peace talks in Qatar , where the Taliban has a representative office .
Analysts said that , although getting both sides to the negotiating table was a major achievement , this does not mean the path to peace will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ around the country .
`` Nothing should prevent a cease-fire being accepted and implemented by both parties , '' Josep Borrell , the high representative for foreign affairs of the European Union , told the Doha meeting via video link .
Negotiations will be arduous , delegates warned , and are starting even as deadly violence continues to grip Afghanistan .
`` We will undoubtedly encounter many challenges in the talks over the coming days , weeks and months , '' Pompeo said as he called for the warring sides to `` seize @ @ @ @ @ @ @ President Donald Trump made the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan a promise before the 2016 presidential election .
In the countdown to this November 's presidential polls , Washington has ramped up pressure to start intra-Afghan negotiations .
Trump has said Washington expected the number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan to be down to 4,000 troops by November .
Nearly two decades since the US-led invasion that toppled the Taliban , the war still kills dozens of people daily and the country 's economy has been shattered .
The talks are expected @ @ @ @ @ @ @ permanent cease-fire , the rights of women and minorities , and the disarming of tens of thousands of Taliban fighters and militias loyal to warlords , some of them aligned with the government .
Constitutional changes , power sharing , and even the name of the country and the flag are expected to be on the agenda as well .
Many people in Afghanistan fear a return of the Taliban as part of a governing arrangement .
The extremist group was accused of human rights violations and abuse of women during its years @ @ @ @ @ @ @ forces invaded and drove the militants from power in 2001 .
The Taliban controlled Afghanistan at the time and harbored Osama bin Laden , the mastermind behind the September 11 , 2001 , terrorist attacks .
With reporting by RFE/RL 's Radio Free Afghanistan , AFP , Reuters , and dpa

The education of girls and women is universally accepted in more than 200 countries and territories, including nearly 50 Muslim-majority nations.
But Afghanistan’s hard-line Islamist Taliban rulers have banned teenage girls from attending school after the sixth grade since they returned to power two years ago. The ban was extended in December to women in universities.
Countless protests by Afghans inside the country, pressure from the international community, and lobbying by Muslim scholars and clerics have failed to convince the fundamentalist Taliban leaders to reopen schools.
Experts are divided over whether the ban is rooted in how the Taliban’s interpretation of Islam is shaped by conservative Pashtun tribal customs and cultural practices or if it is prompted by how senior Taliban ideologues interpret Islamic teachings.
Most Taliban leaders are ethnic Pashtun, Sunni Muslim clerics. Many were educated in Deobandi madrasahs in neighboring Pakistan. Deobandism emerged as a puritanical Islamic revivalist movement in 19-century British Colonial India. Based on the Sunni Hanafi school of jurisprudence, it is a prominent strain among Islamists in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Tribal Influences
Sami Yousafzai, a veteran Afghan journalist and commentator, argues that the Taliban restrictions against women are linked to social customs and cultural practices in eastern and southern Afghanistan.
Most Taliban leaders come from various Pashtun rural tribal communities in these regions bordering Pakistan.
"They believe that a woman's place is either inside a house or in a grave," Yousafzai said of the basic Taliban belief influenced by the status of women in the families of clerics and religious leaders in these Pashtun regions.
“Women living in the households of the current Taliban policymakers were never educated and never left their homes,” said Yousafzai, who has tracked the Islamist group since it emerged as a ragtag militia in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar in late 1994. “These women never performed any government or nongovernmental jobs.”
Yousafzai says the Taliban backs policies shaped by this worldview by leaning on Islamic teachings supporting such ideas. He says Taliban leaders rely on sayings attributed to the Prophet Muhammad that discourage women from leaving their homes.
“Their primary belief is that pubescent girls should not leave home under any circumstance,” he said. “This is why they view women leaving home for education or work as engaging in moral corruption.”
In Afghanistan, a Muslim nation of some 40 million people, activists and rights advocates accuse the Taliban of implementing "gender apartheid" by denying women education, work, freedom of movement, and deciding how they can appear in public.
Most Muslims agree that Islam allows women to get an education. Yet the Taliban publicly says that it will allow girls access to education only after ensuring complete gender segregation and other unspecified conditions.
Almost all Afghan secondary schools were gender segregated and universities imposed a strict separation between men and women after the Taliban takeover.
Yousafzai says in conservative and traditional Muslim societies around the world, some clerics also favor restrictions on women's education, work, and their role in public life. But the governments in those countries usually oppose or limit such ideas.
In recent years, Saudi Arabia -- one of the most conservative Sunni Muslim nations -- has allowed women to drive and granted them freedom of movement without a male guardian. These steps are part of a reform and modernity drive by Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman.
The Taliban ban on education has invited universal condemnation from Muslims globally.
“The Taliban's ban on women's education is not rooted in [the Islamic] Shari’a law but rather reflects cultural biases that contradict the teachings of Islam,” said Salam al-Marayati, president of the Muslim Public Affairs Council in the United States.
He said that contrary to Taliban practices, “Islam emphasizes the importance of seeking knowledge and encourages all individuals, regardless of gender, to acquire an education.”
Historical Conflict
But Islamic scholars and those who have attempted to convince the Taliban about reopening girls schools offer a different explanation.
John Mohammad Butt, an Islamic scholar and former BBC broadcaster who is the only Westerner to graduate from India’s Darul Uloom Deoband, argues that the Taliban's policy on girls' education is not tribal but shaped by the century-old conflict over modern education.
“The problem is that girls' education in Afghanistan -- indeed, contemporary education in general -- has generally been introduced in Afghanistan in line with a secular agenda,” he said.
In the 1920s, a coalition of conservative clerics and tribal and community leaders deposed reformist King Amanullah Khan. He wanted to modernize Afghanistan along Turkish leader Kamal Ataturk's secular lines and championed modern education and rights for women.
This opposition to modernity and secularism continued, and conservative clerics opposed women's education and work. It became a key part of the Islamist opposition to the pro-Soviet Afghan communist governments after the April 1978 military coup that ended the Afghan monarchy. The mujahedin accused the communists of spreading immorality by promoting women’s education and empowerment.
“This has led to particular wariness on the part of conservative circles in Afghanistan with regard to girls' education,” Butt said.
'Deep Ideological Conviction'
Obaidullah Baheer, a political science lecturer at the American University of Afghanistan, became part of an effort to rescind the ban by talking to the Taliban last year.
But he says the effort failed because “the ban is a matter of deep ideological conviction” for the current supreme leader of the Taliban, Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada.
Baheer says that the most prominent Taliban leaders have studied in Pakistani madrasahs and were thus disconnected from village and tribal life.
“They have been indoctrinated by the Deobandi school of thought so that they now enforce the strictest version of Islam on the Afghan population,” he said.
He argues that the ban on girls’ schools is a deliberate policy championed by Akhundzada, who he says has endorsed Taliban Chief Justice Abdul Hakim Haqqani's Arabic language book The Islamic Emirate And Its System. In this book, Haqqani supports a fringe Islamic opinion of preferring the choice of one of the Prophet Muhammad's wives, Sawdah Bint Zam'ah, who chose to stay at home until her death.
Baheer says Haqqani ignores his other wives and other female companions that played an active role in many sectors of society and how they served as students and teachers for men.
“This fringe opinion is not held by all Taliban leaders but is one that the current absolute sovereign, the Taliban emir, seems to be convinced of,” he said.
Butt says that even Haqqani has acknowledged the principle that if there is something that women need to act upon, then that is also something that women need to learn about.
“I hope the Taliban authorities will come to realize in the not-too-distant future that education for women will make Afghan women into better Muslims,” he says. “It will enable them to make a stronger contribution to the well-being of their country.”
Two years after grappling with the issue, Western diplomats appear to be encouraging Afghan conservative and clerical circles to find ways to end the ban.
Tom West, the U.S. special representative for Afghanistan, recently tweeted that Afghan women must be educated and contribute to the economy to help their country stand on its own two feet.
“If change to policies is made, it will be because Afghans have asked for it, not a result of foreign requests,” he wrote.


rferl--2020-09-13--Tens Of Thousands March In Belarusian Capital, Defying Threats And Detentions

MINSK – Tens of thousands of Belarusians jammed the streets of Minsk and other cities and towns , as opposition protesters pressed their nearly five-week campaign to pressure President Alyaksandr Lukashenka to call new elections .
The Interior Ministry reported more than 400 arrests in the September 13 protests .
Still , the turnout in the Belarusian capital and elsewhere was the latest indication that opposition activists , and many average Belarusians , have been undaunted by thousands of arrests , beatings , and other intimidation tactics used by Belarusian security forces .
Chanting `` Long Live Belarus ! ''
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Fired ! ''
crowds packed one of Minsk ’ s main boulevards , waving the red-and-white opposition flag and carrying signs that taunted Lukashenka and government officials .
One sign carried by protesters showed a photograph of Lukashenka and Russian leader Vladimir Putin and read : `` Tell me who your friends are and I will tell you who you are . ''
Lukashenka , who has ruled the country for 26 years , has refused to hold talks with his opponents , and rebuffed calls to hold new elections .
The United @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have been subjected to detentions and , in some cases , torture by Belarusian security agents .
Lukashenka made no public comment , or any public appearances , on September 13 , one day before he was scheduled to fly to Russia to meet Putin for talks .
Authorities did not immediately release any estimate of the crowds ; in the past , however , the public figures have been exceedingly low .
The human rights group Viasna , meanwhile , estimated the turnout at more than 150,000 .
Trucks and some armored @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be seen parked along some central Minsk streets , and , ahead of the demonstration , the Interior Ministry said it had increased police and troop numbers `` to prevent illegal action by protesting citizens . ''
Some activists reported Internet outages in Minsk , a possible repeat of what happened in the hours after the August 9 election that Lukashenka was declared the winner of .
Activists said the outages then were a tactic aimed at shutting down independent news reporting .
Helmeted security forces were reported to be detaining some marchers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and later in the day , masked riot police were seen marching , and carrying , detained protesters into police vans .
The Interior Ministry reported that more than 400 people had been detained by nighfall .
The ministry also said `` around 250 people '' had been detained a day earlier , for offenses like displaying the banned red-and-white flag and banners , `` including an insulting one . ''
Sizable protests also took place on September 13 in the southeastern city of Homel , and in the western border city @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a banner that read `` Hello to Khabarovsk from Brest '' — a reference to the weeks of anti-government protests that have occurred in the Russian Far Eastern city of Khabarovsk .
Brest police deployed a water cannon at one point to disperse protesters .
It was unclear if there were detentions or injuries from the confrontation .
`` Participants in the unauthorized mass gathering blocked traffic and public transport and created a threat to the safety of road users , '' Interior Ministry spokeswoman Olga Chemodanova said in a post to Telegram @ @ @ @ @ @ @ women marched through Minsk , confronting masked riot police and security agents .
The Interior Ministry said 114 people had been detained around the country , 99 of them in the capital , in connection with those demonstrations .
The Interior Ministry 's press department , meanwhile , described the women protesters as `` aggressive . ''
`` It 's a shame to watch : screams , screeching ... '' the ministry said .
`` Such behavior is unfeminine . ''
Many of Belarus ’ s most prominent opposition leaders are women , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ detained members of the Coordination Council like Maryya Kalesnikava , and Lilia Vlasova .
Tsikhanouskaya , who fled to Lithuania after the election amid reports she might be arrested , appealed for protesters to `` remain peaceful '' and urged international support to encourage a peaceful resolution to the `` deep political crisis . ''
Kalesnikava reportedly tore up her passport to avoid being forced out of the country after being snatched off the street in Minsk , and remains in Belarusian detention .
Another prominent leader is Veranika Tsapkala , who went @ @ @ @ @ @ @ her ex-diplomat husband .
Tsikhanouskaya , Kalesnikava , and Tsapkala , have been nominated for this year 's Sakharov Prize for human rights activities .
At the Belarusian State University in Minsk , teachers from the languages department issued a video appeal for freedom of speech .
More than a dozen students were detained last week at a protest near the school 's languages department .
`` Fear is bad , violence is bad , lies are bad .
You can ’ t pretend like nothing ’ s happening , '' the appeal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Lukashenka has long had a sizable base of support , particularly from the country ’ s older population , many of whom are nostalgic for the Soviet period .
But cracks have also opened among segments of the population , like blue-collar workers , where Lukashenka has traditionally sought vocal public support in the past .
The strike committee at one of the world 's largest processors and exporters of potash fertilizers , Belaruskali , said via Telegram on September 13 that one of its members had been detained and was at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ meanwhile , was scheduled to travel to Russia to meet President Vladimir Putin on September 14 .
Though the two have spoken more than five times by phone since August 9 , the meeting , to be held in Black Sea resort of Sochi , will be the first face-to-face talks since Lukashenka publicly pleaded for help from Moscow to put down the demonstrations .
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said their talks would focus on energy cooperation and bilateral ties .
Putin has pressed a reluctant Lukashenka on closer military and political integration @ @ @ @ @ @ @ military assistance under a bilateral military pact , including a police force -- but has largely given only tepid support .
Opposition websites and social media supporters have adopted the slogan `` We wo n't let him sell the country '' ahead of the Sochi meeting .
Russia 's Defense Ministry said on September 13 that its troops would participate alongside Belarusian soldiers in the annual Slavic Brotherhood tactical exercise at a training range in western Belarus .
A Russian paratrooper division will take part in the drills beginning on September 14 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ director of the Vyasna human rights center , warned that Lukashenka would seek to intensify detentions and threats ahead of the Putin meeting `` to show the Kremlin that the protests are abating and he is in control of the situation . ''
“ But so far repression has had the opposite effect , ” he said .
With reporting by Current Time , Interfax , and TASS


rferl--2020-09-12--Russians Vote In Regional Elections Seen As Test Of Putin's Ruling Party

MOSCOW -- Russians have been voting in 41 regions in local elections that were seen as a crucial test for the increasingly unpopular ruling party ahead of next year 's national legislative elections .
Eighteen of the 41 regions will select governors in the September 13 elections ; 11 will choose regional legislatures ; and 22 cities will vote for municipal legislatures .
In addition , four by-elections were also being held for vacant seats in the lower house of the national parliament , the State Duma .
About 35 million voters , some one-third of the national total , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ elections come less than a month after the August 20 poisoning of opposition leader Aleksei Navalny , who is currently hospitalized in Berlin from the suspected ingestion of a Soviet-developed nerve toxin .
His supporters blame Kremlin allies .
As with a recent constitutional referendum that paved the way for Vladimir Putin to remain president beyond 2024 , monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe ( OSCE ) were not invited to observe the vote .
As a means of containing the spread of the coronavirus , which has hit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for the two preceding days .
Critics of Putin , however , argued it was part of an effort to falsify the results in favor of United Russia , the Kremlin-allied ruling party .
In a report issued in July , the independent election-monitoring group Golos said that lawmakers had `` used the epidemiological situation as an excuse to make the electoral system even more opaque and subject to manipulation , including direct falsifications . ''
`` The current elections are being held under the worst legislative framework of the last 25 years @ @ @ @ @ @ @ many regions , the campaigns have been marred by the disqualifications of non-United Russia candidates , attacks on opposition candidates and their campaign workers , and the destruction of campaign materials .
In Novosibirsk on September 8 , several workers of the opposition Novosibirsk-2020 movement sought medical treatment after two unidentified men threw a bottle containing an unknown chemical into a room where dozens of people were undergoing election-monitoring training .
In the town of Nevel in the Pskov region , unknown individuals distributed leaflets overnight that purported to quote from an `` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ link a regional Yabloko leader to exiled former oligarch and Putin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky .
Putin ’ s popularity rating has been in decline for a number of months , particularly in the wake of a Kremlin-driven effort earlier this year to rewrite the constitution in order to make it possible for him to remain in power until 2036 .
United Russia is even less popular , with just 31 percent of Russians expressing a willingness to vote for it , according to research by the independent Levada Center polling agency released on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ image has been battered by its leading role in conducting a controversial national plebiscite on the constitutional revisions and a much-reviled pension reform that raised retirement ages .
The party also faces persistent , unanswered allegations of corruption at the local and national levels , and public discontent with the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic .
United Russia has not produced a national platform despite holding a near monopoly on political power in the country for more than a decade , and many of its candidates are running nominally as independents to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 'Nothing New To Offer ' `` The party is in total crisis , '' Moscow-based political analyst Aleksandr Kynev told the AFP news agency .
`` It has absolutely nothing new to offer . ''
In addition , the elections are being held in the context of weeks of massive protests in the Far Eastern region of Khabarovsk against the Kremlin ’ s removal of a popular governor who was elected in a 2018 landslide over a longtime United Russia incumbent .
Anothe factor is the more-than-a month of protests in neighboring Belarus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Alyaksandr Lukashenka a sixth term .
Allies of the gravely ill opposition leader Navalny are promoting an initiative that they developed and rolled out in 2019 that they call `` smart voting . ''
It is aimed at uniting opposition of all stripes to the ruling United Russia ’ s stranglehold on political power .
Under the scheme , supporters of the `` systemic opposition '' can enter their address into a special app , which will then give them a list of the candidates deemed most likely to defeat their United Russia @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` Our strategy is to increase the turnout among protest voters and to make sure those votes are concentrated for a specific candidate and not scattered , '' a pro-Navalny campaign worker in Novosibirsk Daniil Markelov told RFE/RL .
Such `` smart voting '' was credited in part for the opposition 's success in winning nearly half of the seats up for grabs in the Moscow City Duma in 2019 local elections .
In the Irkutsk region , Kremlin-backed incumbent Igor Kobzev is facing a strong challenge from former Federal Security Service officer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Kobzev was brought to the region in 2019 after the former Communist governor resigned , reportedly under intense Kremlin pressure .
In the northern Arkhangelsk region , United Russia candidate Aleksandr Tsibulsky is being challenged by former Duma Deputy Irina Chirkova of the nationalist Liberal Democratic Party of Russia .
Sentiment against United Russia is running high in the region because of a controversial Moscow-backed proposal to build a huge landfill there .
Although both Tsibulsky and Chirkova have publicly opposed the landfill , voters associate the project strongly with United Russia .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the Siberian city of Tomsk , where Navalny was visiting when he was poisoned before getting onto a flight back to Moscow .
United Russia currently holds 32 of the 37 seats in the city council , but Navalny ’ s strong base of support in the city could be energized to turn out following the attack on their leader .
With reporting by AFP and Meduza

MOSCOW -- Russians voted in 41 regions in local elections that were seen as a crucial test for the increasingly unpopular ruling party ahead of next year's national legislative elections.
Eighteen of the 41 regions were selecting governors in the September 13 elections; 11 were choosing regional legislatures; and 22 cities were voting for municipal legislatures. In addition, four by-elections were also being held for vacant seats in the lower house of the national parliament, the State Duma.
About 35 million voters, some one-third of the national total, were eligible to cast ballots.
The elections came less than a month after the August 20 poisoning of opposition leader Aleksei Navalny, who is currently hospitalized in Berlin from the suspected ingestion of a Soviet-developed nerve toxin. His supporters blame Kremlin allies.
As with a recent constitutional referendum that paved the way for Vladimir Putin to remain president beyond 2024, monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) were not invited to observe the vote.
As a means of containing the spread of the coronavirus, which has hit Russia badly, early voting was organized for the two preceding days. Critics of Putin, however, argued it was part of an effort to falsify the results in favor of United Russia, the Kremlin-allied ruling party.
In a report issued in July, the independent election-monitoring group Golos said that lawmakers had "used the epidemiological situation as an excuse to make the electoral system even more opaque and subject to manipulation, including direct falsifications."
"The current elections are being held under the worst legislative framework of the last 25 years," the report said.
In many regions, the campaigns have been marred by the disqualifications of non-United Russia candidates, attacks on opposition candidates and their campaign workers, and the destruction of campaign materials.
In Novosibirsk on September 8, several workers of the opposition Novosibirsk-2020 movement sought medical treatment after two unidentified men threw a bottle containing an unknown chemical into a room where dozens of people were undergoing election-monitoring training.
In the town of Nevel in the Pskov region, unknown individuals distributed leaflets overnight that purported to quote from an "intercepted" conversation in an attempt to link a regional Yabloko leader to exiled former oligarch and Putin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky.
Putin’s popularity rating has been in decline for a number of months, particularly in the wake of a Kremlin-driven effort earlier this year to rewrite the constitution in order to make it possible for him to remain in power until 2036.
United Russia is even less popular, with just 31 percent of Russians expressing a willingness to vote for it, according to research by the independent Levada Center polling agency released on September 7.
The party’s image has been battered by its leading role in conducting a controversial national plebiscite on the constitutional revisions and a much-reviled pension reform that raised retirement ages.
The party also faces persistent, unanswered allegations of corruption at the local and national levels, and public discontent with the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic.
United Russia has not produced a national platform despite holding a near monopoly on political power in the country for more than a decade, and many of its candidates are running nominally as independents to avoid association with the tarnished brand.
'Nothing New To Offer'
"The party is in total crisis," Moscow-based political analyst Aleksandr Kynev told the AFP news agency. "It has absolutely nothing new to offer."
In addition, the elections are being held in the context of weeks of massive protests in the Far Eastern region of Khabarovsk against the Kremlin’s removal of a popular governor who was elected in a 2018 landslide over a longtime United Russia incumbent.
Anothe factor is the more-than-a month of protests in neighboring Belarus against a disputed election that gave President Alyaksandr Lukashenka a sixth term.
Allies of the gravely ill opposition leader Navalny are promoting an initiative that they developed and rolled out in 2019 that they call "smart voting." It is aimed at uniting opposition of all stripes to the ruling United Russia’s stranglehold on political power.
Under the scheme, supporters of the "systemic opposition" can enter their address into a special app, which will then give them a list of the candidates deemed most likely to defeat their United Russia rivals regardless of their party affiliation.
"Our strategy is to increase the turnout among protest voters and to make sure those votes are concentrated for a specific candidate and not scattered," a pro-Navalny campaign worker in Novosibirsk Daniil Markelov told RFE/RL.
Such "smart voting" was credited in part for the opposition's success in winning nearly half of the seats up for grabs in the Moscow City Duma in 2019 local elections.
In the Irkutsk region, Kremlin-backed incumbent Igor Kobzev is facing a strong challenge from former Federal Security Service officer Mikhail Shchapov of the Communist Party. Kobzev was brought to the region in 2019 after the former Communist governor resigned, reportedly under intense Kremlin pressure.
In the northern Arkhangelsk region, United Russia candidate Aleksandr Tsibulsky is being challenged by former Duma Deputy Irina Chirkova of the nationalist Liberal Democratic Party of Russia. Sentiment against United Russia is running high in the region because of a controversial Moscow-backed proposal to build a huge landfill there. Although both Tsibulsky and Chirkova have publicly opposed the landfill, voters associate the project strongly with United Russia.
Pro-Navalny forces are expecting to make gains in the Siberian city of Tomsk, where Navalny was visiting when he was poisoned before getting onto a flight back to Moscow. United Russia currently holds 32 of the 37 seats in the city council, but Navalny’s strong base of support in the city could be energized to turn out following the attack on their leader.
With reporting by AFP and Meduza


rferl--2020-09-14--Chechnya's Grand Mufti Approves Teenage Blogger's Humiliation, Warns Exiled Politician

GROZNY , Russia -- The grand mufti of Russia 's North Caucasus region of Chechnya , Salakh Mezhiyev , has approved a sentence of torture and humiliation for a 19-year-old Chechen blogger and warned of consequences for an exiled member of the Chechen separatist government , Akhmed Zakayev , who condemned the penalty .
In a video statement posted on Instagram on September 13 , Mezhiyev called the teenager `` a dirty creature , who received what he deserved . ''
Video of the torture and humiliation of the young Chechen , who criticized Chechen police and the region 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1ADAT Telegram channel , circulated over the Internet last week and shocked people in Chechnya and beyond .
Zakayev , who resides in London , on September 8 issued a statement in which he called himself a moderator of the 1ADAT Telegram channel and condemned Chechen authorities for recording the teenager ’ s humiliation and placing the video on the Internet , referring to the ordeal as “ a gross shame.
” Mezhiyev took aim at Zakayev in his statement , warning of repercussions for what he said .
`` You do not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will be found and held responsible , there is no doubt about it , '' Mezhiyev said .
Zakayev said last week that his relatives in Chechnya had been detained after Parliamentary Speaker Magomed Daudov stated that Zakayev will be `` held responsible '' for his involvement in the activities of the 1ADAT Telegram channel .
A former Chechen militant who fought against Russian forces in the first Chechen war , Kadyrov has been accused by Russian and international rights activists of numerous human rights violations , including torture , kidnapping , disappearances @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of personal and political enemies both in Russia and abroad .
Kremlin critics say Putin has turned a blind eye to the alleged abuses and violations of the country 's constitution by Kadyrov because he relies on the former rebel commander to control separatist sentiment and violence in Chechnya , the site of two devastating post-Soviet wars and an Islamist insurgency that spread to other mostly Muslim regions in the North Caucasus .

GROZNY, Russia -- The grand mufti of Russia's North Caucasus region of Chechnya, Salakh Mezhiyev, has approved a sentence of torture and humiliation for a 19-year-old Chechen blogger and warned of consequences for an exiled member of the Chechen separatist government, Akhmed Zakayev, who condemned the penalty.
In a video statement posted on Instagram on September 13, Mezhiyev called the teenager "a dirty creature, who received what he deserved."
Video of the torture and humiliation of the young Chechen, who criticized Chechen police and the region's authoritarian leader Ramzan Kadyrov on the opposition 1ADAT Telegram channel, circulated over the Internet last week and shocked people in Chechnya and beyond.
Zakayev, who resides in London, on September 8 issued a statement in which he called himself a moderator of the 1ADAT Telegram channel and condemned Chechen authorities for recording the teenager’s humiliation and placing the video on the Internet, referring to the ordeal as “a gross shame.”
Mezhiyev took aim at Zakayev in his statement, warning of repercussions for what he said.
"You do not have a place to go. You will be found and held responsible, there is no doubt about it," Mezhiyev said.
Zakayev said last week that his relatives in Chechnya had been detained after Parliamentary Speaker Magomed Daudov stated that Zakayev will be "held responsible" for his involvement in the activities of the 1ADAT Telegram channel.
A former Chechen militant who fought against Russian forces in the first Chechen war, Kadyrov has been accused by Russian and international rights activists of numerous human rights violations, including torture, kidnapping, disappearances, extrajudicial executions, and the assassination of personal and political enemies both in Russia and abroad.
Kremlin critics say Putin has turned a blind eye to the alleged abuses and violations of the country's constitution by Kadyrov because he relies on the former rebel commander to control separatist sentiment and violence in Chechnya, the site of two devastating post-Soviet wars and an Islamist insurgency that spread to other mostly Muslim regions in the North Caucasus.


rferl--2020-09-14--Defiant Kazakh Activist Fined For Calling Police 'Nazarbaev's Puppies'

A well-known Kazakh civil rights activist , Erbol Eskhozhin , has been fined for publicly calling police officers `` Nazarbaev 's puppies . ''
Nursultan Nazarbaev is Kazakhstan ’ s former president who ruled the Central Asian nation for almost 30 years before he resigned in March 2019 .
He continues to control the country as the leader of the ruling Nur-Otan party and the lifetime chairman of the powerful Security Council .
A court in Kazakhstan 's largest city , Almaty , on September 14 found Eskhozhin guilty of insulting police and fined him $ 530 , his lawyer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the police `` Nazarbaev 's puppies '' when law enforcement officers were dispersing demonstrators in Nur-Sultan , the capital , during protests early this year .
Eskhozhin said he will not pay the fine , adding that the court 's decision will be appealed and that the case against him is politically motivated .
`` I ca n't pay the fine , even if they jail me ... .
The ruling indicates that the authorities are scared of the increasing number of civil rights activists in the country .
People do not have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
Since last year , the 43-year-old activist has been sentenced six times to several days in jail for taking part in unsanctioned rallies and , in all , has spent 85 days in jail .

A well-known Kazakh civil rights activist, Erbol Eskhozhin, has been fined for publicly calling police officers "Nazarbaev's puppies."
Nursultan Nazarbaev is Kazakhstan’s former president who ruled the Central Asian nation for almost 30 years before he resigned in March 2019. He continues to control the country as the leader of the ruling Nur-Otan party and the lifetime chairman of the powerful Security Council.
A court in Kazakhstan's largest city, Almaty, on September 14 found Eskhozhin guilty of insulting police and fined him $530, his lawyer Olga Enns told RFE/RL.
Eskhozhin called the police "Nazarbaev's puppies" when law enforcement officers were dispersing demonstrators in Nur-Sultan, the capital, during protests early this year.
Eskhozhin said he will not pay the fine, adding that the court's decision will be appealed and that the case against him is politically motivated.
"I can't pay the fine, even if they jail me.... The ruling indicates that the authorities are scared of the increasing number of civil rights activists in the country. People do not have as much fear now," Eskhozhin said.
Since last year, the 43-year-old activist has been sentenced six times to several days in jail for taking part in unsanctioned rallies and, in all, has spent 85 days in jail.


rferl--2020-09-14--Tajik President Rahmon, Four Other Men Registered As Presidential Candidates

DUSHANBE -- Tajikistan 's long-serving President Emomali Rahmon and four other men have been registered as candidates for a presidential election scheduled for October 11 .
The Central Election Commission of the Central Asian nation said on September 14 that it had registered as candidates Rustam Latifzoda of the Agrarian Party ; Abduhalim Ghafforov of the Socialist Party ; Miroj Abdulloev of the Communist Party ; Rustam Rahmatzoda of the Party of Economic Reforms ; and Rahmon , who is the leader of the People 's Democratic Party .
The secretary of the Central Election Commission , Navruz Samadzoda , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ possible registration of a sixth candidate , the leader of the Democratic Party , Saidjafar Usmonzoda , will be made later in the day .
The deadline for filing documents for the registration of presidential candidates was September 11 .
Many in Tajikistan expect that the incumbent Rahmon , who was nominated by his party , the Federation of Independent Trade Unions , and the Union of Tajikistan 's Youth will be announced as the winner again , saying that the other candidates were registered just to present the facade that the election @ @ @ @ @ @ @ kick off on September 15 after all registered candidates receive official documents confirming their participation .
The only opposition party functioning inside Tajikistan , the Social Democratic Party , said earlier that it will boycott the poll .
There has been speculation that Rahmon , who has been president since 1992 , would bow out to clear the way for his son , Dushanbe Mayor Rustam Emomali , to run for the presidency .
In Tajikistan 's last presidential election , in 2013 , Rahmon was reelected by a landslide , with 84 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the five presidential elections won by Rahmon has been deemed free and fair by Western election observers .

DUSHANBE -- Tajikistan's long-serving President Emomali Rahmon and four other men have been registered as candidates for a presidential election scheduled for October 11.
The Central Election Commission of the Central Asian nation said on September 14 that it had registered as candidates Rustam Latifzoda of the Agrarian Party; Abduhalim Ghafforov of the Socialist Party; Miroj Abdulloev of the Communist Party; Rustam Rahmatzoda of the Party of Economic Reforms; and Rahmon, who is the leader of the People's Democratic Party.
The secretary of the Central Election Commission, Navruz Samadzoda, told RFE/RL that a decision on the possible registration of a sixth candidate, the leader of the Democratic Party, Saidjafar Usmonzoda, will be made later in the day.
The deadline for filing documents for the registration of presidential candidates was September 11.
Many in Tajikistan expect that the incumbent Rahmon, who was nominated by his party, the Federation of Independent Trade Unions, and the Union of Tajikistan's Youth will be announced as the winner again, saying that the other candidates were registered just to present the facade that the election has legitimate competition.
The campaign will kick off on September 15 after all registered candidates receive official documents confirming their participation.
The only opposition party functioning inside Tajikistan, the Social Democratic Party, said earlier that it will boycott the poll.
There has been speculation that Rahmon, who has been president since 1992, would bow out to clear the way for his son, Dushanbe Mayor Rustam Emomali, to run for the presidency.
In Tajikistan's last presidential election, in 2013, Rahmon was reelected by a landslide, with 84 percent of the vote.
None of the five presidential elections won by Rahmon has been deemed free and fair by Western election observers.


rferl--2020-09-14--NGOs Urge EU To Tackle Legal Breaches By Chinese Firms In Southeastern Europe

Civil society groups working in Southeastern Europe are calling on the European Union to step up its actions on legal violations of EU law by Chinese state-owned enterprises in Europe .
The CEE Bankwatch Network made the plea on September 14 as German Chancellor Angela Merkel , EU Council President Charles Michel , and Commission President Ursula von der Leyen meet online with China 's President Xi Jinping to discuss a planned investment agreement , among other things .
The network noted in a statement that Chinese state-owned companies have been “ particularly active ” in Southeast Europe in recent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ four new coal plants , rehabilitate two coal plants , invest in heavy industries , and construct other infrastructure .
In Serbia , Chinese firms have also bought a steel plant and a copper mine and are planning to build a tire factory , it said .
But “ most of the projects breach national and EU environmental , procurement , and state-aid law , ” according to the CEE Bankwatch Network .
It added that none of the projects is in line with the latest EU pollution control standards of 2017 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ assessment studies , and the Drmno lignite mine expansion project in Serbia had “ none at all.
” “ Quite often we hear that these are win-win projects .
Unfortunately , this is true only for the Chinese side that is producing and exporting all of the equipment and using Chinese workers to install it , ” said Denis Zisko from the Center for Ecology and Energy in Tuzla , Bosnia-Herzegovina .
For the Bosnian side , “ this is more of a lose-lose case , since we will end up with a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” he added .
The CEE Bankwatch Network pointed out that a federal loan guarantee for Bosnia ’ s Tuzla 7 coal-power project is subject to an infringement procedure by the secretariat of the Energy Community Treaty due to state aid violations .
The Energy Community Treaty creates an internal market in electricity and natural gas bringing together the EU member states and six Balkan countries .
Under a 2013 agreement between Belgrade and Beijing , Chinese projects in Serbia do not undergo tender procedures , in clear violation of EU procurement rules @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of civil society groups want the EU to “ clearly tell China to stop building new coal plants in EU and accession countries ” and “ set this and compliance with EU law as binding conditions ” in the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment currently being negotiated between Brussels and China .
They said law enforcement in accession countries should also be improved , including by “ strengthening the Energy Community Treaty to enable penalties to be issued , ” while a carbon border tax for electricity must be introduced to “ help reinforce @ @ @ @ @ @ @ economic.
” “ The need to limit climate change clearly means that no more fossil fuel infrastructure can be built anywhere .
Southeast European governments bear the primary responsibility for poor decision-making and enforcement on Chinese-built projects , but they will ultimately create problems for the whole EU as the accession countries struggle to comply with EU law , ” warned Zvezdan Kalmar from the Center for Ecology and Sustainable Development in Serbia .

Civil society groups working in Southeastern Europe are calling on the European Union to step up its actions on legal violations of EU law by Chinese state-owned enterprises in Europe.
The CEE Bankwatch Network made the plea on September 14 as German Chancellor Angela Merkel, EU Council President Charles Michel, and Commission President Ursula von der Leyen meet online with China's President Xi Jinping to discuss a planned investment agreement, among other things.
The network noted in a statement that Chinese state-owned companies have been “particularly active” in Southeast Europe in recent years, citing signed contracts to build four new coal plants, rehabilitate two coal plants, invest in heavy industries, and construct other infrastructure.
In Serbia, Chinese firms have also bought a steel plant and a copper mine and are planning to build a tire factory, it said.
But “most of the projects breach national and EU environmental, procurement, and state-aid law,” according to the CEE Bankwatch Network.
It added that none of the projects is in line with the latest EU pollution control standards of 2017, most have “very weak” environmental assessment studies, and the Drmno lignite mine expansion project in Serbia had “none at all.”
“Quite often we hear that these are win-win projects. Unfortunately, this is true only for the Chinese side that is producing and exporting all of the equipment and using Chinese workers to install it,” said Denis Zisko from the Center for Ecology and Energy in Tuzla, Bosnia-Herzegovina.
For the Bosnian side, “this is more of a lose-lose case, since we will end up with a huge debt and a stranded asset,” he added.
The CEE Bankwatch Network pointed out that a federal loan guarantee for Bosnia’s Tuzla 7 coal-power project is subject to an infringement procedure by the secretariat of the Energy Community Treaty due to state aid violations. The Energy Community Treaty creates an internal market in electricity and natural gas bringing together the EU member states and six Balkan countries.
Under a 2013 agreement between Belgrade and Beijing, Chinese projects in Serbia do not undergo tender procedures, in clear violation of EU procurement rules, it also said.
The coalition of civil society groups want the EU to “clearly tell China to stop building new coal plants in EU and accession countries” and “set this and compliance with EU law as binding conditions” in the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment currently being negotiated between Brussels and China.
They said law enforcement in accession countries should also be improved, including by “strengthening the Energy Community Treaty to enable penalties to be issued,” while a carbon border tax for electricity must be introduced to “help reinforce the message that coal is no longer economic.”
“The need to limit climate change clearly means that no more fossil fuel infrastructure can be built anywhere. Southeast European governments bear the primary responsibility for poor decision-making and enforcement on Chinese-built projects, but they will ultimately create problems for the whole EU as the accession countries struggle to comply with EU law,” warned Zvezdan Kalmar from the Center for Ecology and Sustainable Development in Serbia.


rferl--2020-09-14--Lawyer: Belarusian-American Political Strategist Jailed In Minsk Needs Medical Assistance

A Belarusian-American political strategist who has been held in a Minsk jail for nearly six weeks has suffered a broken finger and had a high fever in recent days , his lawyer said , with his jailers refusing his demands to test him for COVID-19 .
Vitaly Shklyarov ’ s detention by Belarusian security agents in late July has spurred increasingly urgent warnings from U.S. government officials , who have called his jailing “ unjust.
” Shklyarov , who has worked on political campaigns for former U.S. President Barack Obama and Senator Bernie Sanders , has had a constant cough @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his lawyer Anton Gashinsky told RFE/RL .
His client has demanded that he be tested for the coronavirus , but jail officials have refused , Gashinsky said .
In response to his fever , a jail medic prescribed him only a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug .
Gashinsky said he visited the Minsk jail where Shklyarov is being held on September 11 , but that he was not allowed to see him .
Shklyarov , who has also worked on the political campaign of the Russian socialite Ksenia Sobchak , was arrested on July 29 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ presidential election .
He has said he was visiting relatives in rural Belarus .
But law enforcement officials have asserted he was trying to assist blogger Syarhey Tsikhanouski to register as a candidate in the election .
Tsikhanouski was himself detained prior to the election ; his wife , Svyatlana , then stood for election in his place and has since become a leading Belarusian opposition activist .
On August 7 , Belarusian prosecutors charged Tsikhanouski with organizing mass disorders .
He could get up to three years in prison if convicted .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ in early August , Shklyarov likened his conditions to that of the Soviet gulag prison camps , and he said his jailers were trying to pressure him psychologically .
`` They are trying to break me using all means possible , '' he wrote .
In a public statement on September 8 , U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo specifically named Shklyarov , calling his detention unjust and saying he should be released immediately .

A Belarusian-American political strategist who has been held in a Minsk jail for nearly six weeks has suffered a broken finger and had a high fever in recent days, his lawyer said, with his jailers refusing his demands to test him for COVID-19.
Vitali Shkliarov’s detention by Belarusian security agents in late July has spurred increasingly urgent warnings from U.S. government officials, who have called his jailing “unjust.”
Shkliarov, who has worked on political campaigns for former U.S. President Barack Obama and Senator Bernie Sanders, has had a constant cough and high fever for several days, his lawyer Anton Gashinsky told RFE/RL.
His client has demanded that he be tested for the coronavirus, but jail officials have refused, Gashinsky said. In response to his fever, a jail medic prescribed him only a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug.
Gashinsky said he visited the Minsk jail where Shkliarov is being held on September 11, but that he was not allowed to see him.
Shkliarov, who has also worked on the political campaign of the Russian socialite Ksenia Sobchak, was arrested on July 29, 10 days before Belarus held its presidential election.
He has said he was visiting relatives in rural Belarus.
But law enforcement officials have asserted he was trying to assist blogger Syarhey Tsikhanouski to register as a candidate in the election. Tsikhanouski was himself detained prior to the election; his wife, Svyatlana, then stood for election in his place and has since become a leading Belarusian opposition activist.
On August 7, Belarusian prosecutors charged Tsikhanouski with organizing mass disorders. He could get up to three years in prison if convicted.
In a first-person statement released by Gashinsky in early August, Shkliarov likened his conditions to that of the Soviet gulag prison camps, and he said his jailers were trying to pressure him psychologically.
"They are trying to break me using all means possible," he wrote.
In a public statement on September 8, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo specifically named Shkliarov, calling his detention unjust and saying he should be released immediately.