Belarus: election protests update
27 Aug 2020
Two senior figures in Belarus's protest movement were given ten-day jail terms at the notorious Okrestino detention centre for organising demonstrations. Olga Kovalkova and Sergei Dylevsky are high-profile members of the National Coordination Council, set up…
Germany scraps plans for Brexit talks
27 Aug 2020
The German government, which holds the rotating presidency of the EU council, had intended to discuss Brexit during a meeting of EU ambassadors on 2 September, but has now decided to drop the Brexit issue because…
Belarus: winds of change?
20 Aug 2020
Belarus is known as ‘Europe’s last dictatorship’. After being elected on an anti-corruption platform President Lukashenko ruled for 26 years, betraying his mandate and the trust of his people. When citizens cast their ballots recently they…
Migrant boy found dead on Calais beach
20 Aug 2020
Two teenagers unsuccessfully tried to cross the Channel in a three-foot dinghy using shovels as oars. They wanted to cross by themselves, bypassing people smugglers who charge high prices. One was a 16-year-old Sudanese boy who…
Russia: persecution of missionaries
20 Aug 2020
Individuals of almost every religious affiliation continue to face prosecution under Russia’s ‘anti-missionary legislation’ for exercising their right to freedom of religion and belief. Despite a 2018 constitutional court decision which offered some clarification of what…
Russia: vaccine approved for use
13 Aug 2020
Vladimir Putin said a vaccine for Covid-19 has been given regulatory approval after less than two months’ testing on humans. It has passed all the required checks, and he added that his daughter had already been…