Belarus clamps down on Sannikov lawyer

Attorney Marina Kovalevskaya

The attorney who represented opposition presidential candidate Andrei Sannikov has been banned from leaving Belarus. Today Marina Kovalevskaya was denied permission to travel internationally to Vilnius and her passport was seized and stamped “denied exit from the country” before it was returned to her.

Her client Andrei Sannikov was a 2010 presidential candidate with the second highest percentage of the popular votes after incumbent dictator Aleksandr Lukashenko. Sannikov was incarcerated in the KGB prison in Minsk for peacefully protesting at a demonstration after the elections.

Mr. Sannikov’s health was in serious danger and he was pardoned in April of this year after pressure was put on the dictator of Belarus. Sannikov was a former Ambassador to Switzerland and a former Deputy Foreign Minister for Belarus.

Ms. Kovalevskaya and her family were traveling when her passport was seized.

Navalny fined for “crooks and thieves” comments

The Moscow Times is reporting that a Moscow court has ordered prominent opposition activist Alexei Navalny to pay a United Russia State Duma deputy 30,000 rubles ($896) for comments he made about party members in the Russian version of Esquire magazine.

Russian anti-corruption attorney Alexi Navalny.

Court spokesperson Maria Balakshina said United Russia deputy Vladimir Svirid’s request to force Navalny to denounce his previous statement and give monetary compensation for moral harm had been partially fulfilled with the court order Monday, Rapsi reported.

“In United Russia, there are people I come across that I generally like. But if you have joined United Russia, you are still a thief. And if you are not a thief, then you are a crook, because you use your name to cover the rest of the thieves and crooks,” Navalny wrote.

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