Tony Wesolowsky

Автор: Tony Wesolowsky

• 14 сентября 2021

  Who Is Aleskandr Franchetti, The Russian Arrested In Prague And Wanted By Kyiv For His Actions In Crimea?

  Aleksandr Franchetti, a 48-year-old Russian who has spent years in Prague, was arrested by Czech police at the request of Ukraine, which wants to try him for his alleged role in Russia's seizure of Crimea in 2014. Who is Franchetti and what was he doing on the Black Sea peninsula in 2014?

• 26 июля 2021

  When Wearing The Wrong Socks Or Dancing Is A Crime In Belarus

  Tens of thousands of people have been detained in Belarus in a brutal government crackdown after a disputed election in August 2020 extended the decades-long rule of Alyaksandr Lukashenka. For such "crimes" as wearing the wrong socks or dancing in the streets, people have been fined or even jailed.

• 7 мая 2021

  Belarus's Lukashenka Doubles Down On Fear To Silence Pro-Democracy Opponents

  Opponents of Belarusian strongman Alyaksandr Lukashenka can face arrest simply for displaying the red-and-white colors of the opposition, even on socks. The longtime authoritarian leader is doubling down on fear to silence his opponents. 

• 26 апреля 2021

  Belarusian Opposition Leader Tsikhanouskaya, A 'Child Of Chernobyl'

  After the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, hundreds of thousands of children from hard-hit areas of Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia spent summer vacations in the West to get away, even for a short time, from the irradiated region. Among them: today's Belarusian opposition leader, Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya.

• 9 декабря 2020

  For Victims Of Sexual Violence In Ukraine's Donbas, Justice Seems Distant

  One in four people held prisoner by Russia-backed separatists in the Donbas region has been a victim of rape or other sexual violence, according to a recent report by a Ukrainian human rights group. And the real number may be higher, as some victims are afraid to speak out.

• 30 ноября 2020

  'Shoot It Down!': The Tragic Tale Of Two American Balloonists Over Belarus

  Twenty-five years ago, two Americans’ attempt to win a prestigious balloon race ended in tragedy over Belarus.

• 3 ноября 2020

  Workers In Belarus Face Dismissal, Potential Arrest If They Join Anti-Government Walkout

  A strike committee leader at a major Belarusian chemical factory says workers are wary of publicly voicing their support and joining the opposition's national strike demanding that Alyaksandr Lukashenka step down amid threats of firings and other harassment by the state.

• 17 октября 2020

  Lawyers In Belarus Face Disbarment, Arrest Just For Representing Opponents Of Lukashenka

  As they defend fellow citizens swept up in the state's crackdown on postelection protests, Belarusian lawyers face a rising caseload -- and often find themselves targeted for arrest and detention as well.

• 19 августа 2020

  'At Night The Screaming Began': Firsthand Account Of Torture At Minsk Detention Center

  Artyom Vazhenkov, a coordinator of Russia's Open Society opposition movement, is back in Moscow after being detained in Minsk during the aftermath of the disputed presidential election. He spoke of the torture and other abuse he endured and witnessed at the detention facility where he was held.

• 29 июля 2020

  State Media Vs. The Streets: How Lukashenka Lost The Media War In Belarus

  Many older Belarusians may still get their news from state media, but younger generations have turned to social media and independent sites that are far from loyal, let alone fawning, when it comes to authoritarian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka.

• 16 июня 2020

  After 25 Years, Budyonnovsk Hostage Crisis Seen As Horrific Harbinger Of Terror

  Chechen militants led by Shamil Basayev on June 14, 1995, took about 1,500 hostages in the southern Russian town of Budyonnovsk and seized a hospital. More than 100 died in the course of the five-day drama, many after failed attempts by Russian forces to free the hostages. It came just months after Russian forces launched the First Chechen War in December 1994.

• 7 августа 2019

  A Belarusian Pensioner Challenges The State With An Outlawed Banner

  A 72-year-old woman in Belarus has racked up more than $16,000 in fines for taking part in decades of demonstrations and protests, many alone and holding the banned Belarusian first republic flag.

• 31 марта 2019

  An Incinerator In Tatarstan Is The Latest Battleground In Russia's Garbage Wars

  Plans to build a trash incinerator plant in a town in the southern Russian republic of Tatarstan have sparked protests over fears the plant will dirty the air and cause more cases of cancer.

• 27 ноября 2018

  Arms For All? Khodorkovsky Says Russians Need Guns

  Mikhail Khodorkovsky remains upbeat about the prospects of democratic change in Russia, but sees the need for the citizenry to protect themselves from the government.