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Information ministry withdraws closure suit against Nasha Niva

The information ministry on July 12 unexpectedly withdrew its suit seeking the closure of Nasha Niva, a leading Minsk-based private newspaper critical of the government.

After the hearing of the suit resumed in the Supreme Economic Court of Belarus on Tuesday, the information ministry’s representative asked the court to close the proceedings, saying that the plaintiff was withdrawing its suit. No explanation was given for the withdrawal.

After a small break, Judge Viktar Kuryla declared the proceedings closed.

The ministry filed the suit on April 27, making use of regulations providing that a publication may be closed down by a court decision if it has received two or more formal warnings from the information ministry within a year.

Last year the ministry issued two warnings to Nasha Niva for its coverage of “Kryostny Batska” (The Godbatska), a scandalous documentary about Alyaksandr Lukashenka that was produced last year by Russia's government-controlled NTV channel and censored from the channel's version broadcast in Belarus.

On April 14, 2011, the ministry issued a new warning to Nasha Niva, this time for its coverage of the April 11 Minsk subway bombing, which the ministry said caused “damage to public interests.”

The ministry’s move to withdraw its suit came as a complete surprise to Nasha Niva. “This is a rare instance of common sense prevailing,” Editor in Chief Andrey Skurko commented to reporters. “I guess this surprise would not have taken place if it had not been for the pressure on the authorities from the public, if it had not been for many letters from readers to the information ministry.”

Attending Tuesday’s court session were former presidential candidates Uladzimir Nyaklyayew and Ryhor Kastusyow; Alyaksey Yanukevich, chairperson of the Belarusian Popular Front; and Zhanna Litvina, chairperson of the Belarusian Association of Journalists.

In photos:
4, 6 – Andrey Skurko;
5 – Ryhor Kastusyow (left) and Alyaksey Yanukevich (center)