Belarus Expels Human Rights Group From Offices

Staffers at the Minsk office of the Belarusian Helsinki Committee on January 22 (Bymedia.net)

January 23, 2007 -- A human rights group in Belarus says authorities have ordered it to leave its offices in a building it has rented from the state since 1998.

The head of the Belarusian Helsinki Committee, Tatsyana Protska, said on January 22 that the move to deprive the organization of a legal address comes after it had stepped up its contacts with Western Europe.

She said the group will appeal the decision.

(AP)