The Main Department of Justice of the Mahiliou Regional Executive Committee has now decided to abandon the lawsuit it filed against the “Mahiliou Human Rights Center” (MHRC) for allegedly failing to provide proper documentation for a legal address. This claim is frequently used as grounds to refuse or withdraw the registration of NGOs in Belarus and the MHRC has been repeatedly subjected to harassment from the local authorities.
FIDH and its member organisation, Human Rights Center Viasna, urged Belarusian authorities to withdraw this lawsuit and refrain from impeding the legitimate activities of the organization. The MHRC, which is crucially the only registered human rights association left in the region, remains free to pursue its human rights activities.