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Free All Words#FreeAllWords: International Text and Translation Fund of the European Writers‘ Council (EWC) gives a voice to authors from Belarus and Ukraine

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#freewordsBelarus: European Writers stand with the Union of Belarusian Writers

23rd August 2021

In response to the news that the Belarusian Justice Ministry intends to liquidate the independent Union of Belarusian Writers, the European Writers Council (EWC) stands up high against the outrageous violation of Freedom of Speech and Freedom of Association

Brussels, 23 August 2021

Our EWC member, the Union of Belarusian Writers (UBW) Саюз беларускіх пісьменнікаў, is threatened with forced state dissolution. The first hearing is due to take place on 24 August at 14:30 Minsk time. The association was founded in 1934 and was already able to stand up to arbitrary state action in 2006. On 9 August 2021, also the writers’ community of the PEN Centre Belarus was forcibly closed down by the state for allegedly “endangering national security”.

The EWC strongly condemns the current proceedings against its member, the Union of Belarusian Writers. On 13 July, the offices of Саюз беларускіх пісьменнікаў were stormed and sealed. Among other accusations, the Union is now accused of not having been able to submit papers in time – papers that the state itself has put under lock and key. The Chair of our member association, the novelist Barys Piatrovich, is under travel ban and forced to sign non-disclosure agreement. The crackdown on our member as well as now over 50 independent cultural, media and human rights organisations in Belarus is an unprecedented violation of human rights, and against the Belarusian civil society. EWC believes that the indictment is in fact intended to prevent the UBW from continuing to advocate for literary diversity and free speech.

Belarus has ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. This treaty under international law guarantees the provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, supplemented by the UN Declaration on the Protection of Human Rights Defenders. Belarus is also a member of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

All of these international regulations guarantee freedom of association and freedom of expression and specify in which cases these fundamental rights may be restricted. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights clearly states that restrictions must have a legitimate aim and must be necessary and proportionate to that aim in a democratic society. Belarus is also obliged to fulfil its obligations under the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties. The EWC calls on the Supreme Court to fulfil its duty as safeguard of freedom.

By dissolving the UBW, Belarus would be in blatant and serious violation of international laws. Therefore, the EWC calls on to European countries to act now to prevent the emergence of a true fascist regime in the midst of Europe. We reiterate our call for active support to the democracy movement through facilitated visas and scholarships abroad, monetary support to NGOs in the neighbouring states and support for the reconstruction of civil associations and societies.

Nina George – President

Maïa Bensimon – Vice President

Miguel Ángel Serrano – Vice President

Myriam Diocaretz – Secretary General

Eystein Hanssen  – Board Member

Markku Loytönen – Board Member

**

Background:

Belarus One Year After the Election: Writers, Translators, Journalists Speak Out

Previous Post
Belarus: Radical crackdown against the Free Word
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eyshans Eystein Hanssen 🏴‍☠️ @eyshans ·
2 Feb

@FreeAllWords publiserer oversatte tekster fra ukrainske og belarusiske forfattere. Prosjektet er i regi av @CouncilWriters, med bidrag fra bla. @FrittOrd, @Kopinor og @Forfatterforb. Sjekk ut ...hjemmesiden her: https://freeallwords.org

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cultcreatorseu Cultural Creators Friendship Group 🇪🇺 @cultcreatorseu ·
1 Feb

In 2022, our #CCFG (co-)hosted or officially supported 7 public events, including with these partners: @le_CNM @MinistereCC @regiongrandest @saabrussels @SportsGroup2024 @Liveurope @ABconcerts ...@Creators_ECSA @Film_directors @CouncilWriters @ScreenwritersEU @EVisual_Artists.

Retweet on Twitter European Writers' Council Retweeted
agstrait Andrew Strait agstrait@someone.elses.computer @agstrait ·
20 Jan

There are also the impacts these systems are having on small rights holders, whose data is often used without their consent, attribution, or compensation. Hence the lawsuits against Midjourney by ...artists, and against OpenAI/Microsoft/Github by coders

https://twitter.com/neilturkewitz/status/1614316534750654465

neil turkewitz @neilturkewitz

NEWS ALERT…

Class action lawsuit filed against Midjourney, StabilityAI (StableDiffusion) & DeviantArt for the unauthorized use of copyright protected works to train their AI systems.

...https://stablediffusionlitigation.com/pdf/00201/1-1-stable-diffusion-complaint.pdf

Retweet on Twitter European Writers' Council Retweeted
andrewyang Andrew Yang🧢⬆️🇺🇸 @andrewyang ·
21 Jan

What impact will ChatGPT have on colleges, the workforce and democracy? Monday on http://andrewyang.com/podcast writer for the Atlantic and author of “The Next Civil War: Dispatches from ...America’s Future” @StephenMarche joins to talk where AI is taking us - whether we like it or not.

Retweet on Twitter European Writers' Council Retweeted
pubperspectives PubPerspectives @pubperspectives ·
8 Jan

From the week: Surveying the Profession(s): How Much Do UK Writers Earn? | @Porter_Anderson https://bit.ly/3WDDnT8 @ALCS_UK @Soc_of_Authors @copyrightcentre @UofGlasgow | A new British survey of ...authors warns of falling incomes and faltering sustainability in writing occupations

Retweet on Twitter European Writers' Council Retweeted
iniurheberrecht Initiative Urheberrecht @iniurheberrecht ·
8 Jan

#KI #Hörbuch Death of the narrator? Apple unveils suite of AI-voiced audiobooks | Apple | The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2023/jan/04/apple-artificial-intelligence-ai-audiobooks

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