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Last surviving author of Universal Declaration of Human Rights joins committee for nominating Byalyatski for Nobel Peace Prize

Stephane Hessel, the last surviving author of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, has joined an international committee formed to nominate jailed Belarusian human rights defender Ales Byalyatski for the 2012 Nobel Peace Prize, said a Minsk-based human rights group called Vyasna.

Mr. Hessel was one of the first prominent figures to sign a petition calling for Mr. Byalyatski's release.

Mr. Hessel, 93, is a former French Resistance spy, Nazi concentration camp survivor, and postwar diplomat.

The committee now includes some 40 prominent politicians and human rights defenders from various countries and the number has been constantly increasing.

Mr. Byalyatski, 49, has been held in a detention center in Minsk since August 4.

On August 12, the chairman of Vyasna and vice president of the International Federation for Human Rights was formally charged with large-scale tax evasion, an offense that carries a penalty of a “restricted freedom” term of up to five years or a prison term of three to seven years.

The charge stems from information about Mr. Byalyatski’s bank accounts abroad, which was provided by authorities in a number of European countries.

Mr. Byalyatski’s associates insist that the money in his bank accounts abroad should not be viewed as his personal income, as it was contributed by various foundations and intended to finance Vyasna’s activities. //BelaPAN