Today the whole world, for the 29th time, celebrates the International Day of the Disappeared.
Four famous persons were subjected to involuntary disappearance in 1999-2000 in Belarus. Their fate still remains unknown.
Yury Zakharenko
Ex-minister of Internal Affairs, General of Police Forces Yury Zakharenko was kidnapped not far from his house in the evening of May 7,1999. A number of years before the abduction Yuru Zakharenko had been dismissed from his position as Minister of Internal Affairs. The dismissal of a rather respected among his colleagues officer is believed to be connected with his political attitude towards president Lukashenko and his cabinet people. However the most likely reason of Yuru Zakharenko’s abduction were his activities aimed at creating the Officers Union, an organization out of the government control which was supposed to unite within it high rank representatives of Police and Military Forces.
Petrushkevitch and Slutchek, the government investigators in charge of Zakharenko’s case had to seek asylum abroad having discovered a number of facts: they made public known some striking evidence proving the existence in Belarus of the so-called “death squad”, a force unit created by the government authorities and entitled notwithstanding the legislation to physically suppress the dissenters. The members of “death squad” are considered to be the ones related to Yury Zakharenko’s abduction.
Viktor Gonchar
Viktor Gonchar was head of economic/legal department of the State Economic Planning Committee, first deputy chairman of the Molodechno City Executive Committee, deputy Prime Minister of Belarus, general secretary of the Economic Court of the Commonwealth of Independent States, chairman of the Central Electoral and Referendums Commission. From 1990 to 1995 was a deputy of the Supreme Soviet of Belarus.
Viktor Gonchar also held the post of first deputy chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Belarus of the 13th Convocation and that of chairman of the Central Electoral Commission. During the 1996 constitutional crisis took active part in the activities of the Supreme Soviet. In May 1999 headed the presidential elections campaign. In July of the same year made an official statement about the end of Lukashenko’s legal presidential rule. On July 21, 1999 elected acting chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the Republic of Belarus by deputies of the Supreme Soviet of the 13th Convocation. Disappeared on September 16th 1999 from the building of a bathhouse together with his friend Anatoly Krasovsky.
Anatoly Krasovsky
Anatoly Krasovsky studied physics at Belarusian State University. Professor, candidate of Philosophy, author of dozens of scientific works and a number of student books, creator of the school course “Ethics and Psychology of Family Life”. In the early 90s he turned into an important entrepreneur and publisher of popular magazines. He was involved in charity work, rendered financial assistance to a number of Belarusian social organizations. He was known as a personal friend of deputy chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the 13th Convocation Viktor Gonchar, Belarusian opposition leader of the late 90s. Anatoly Krasovsky disappeared together with Viktor Gonchar from building of a bathhouse on September 16th 2009. The official investigation, despite the fact of permanent surveillance over Viktor Gonchar and Anatoly Krasovsky conducted by the KGB, announced that the case could not be solved. After Mr. Gonchar and Mr. Krasovsky disappeared the KGB issued a statement claiming that surveillance was suspended precisely on September 16.
Dmitry Zavadsky
Dmitry Zavadsky from 1994 to 1997 worked as personal camera man of president Lukashenko. Since 1997 worked as camera man at Russian Public Television (ORT). In the spring of 1997 he and ORT reporter Pavel Sheremet were arrested for making a report about the vulnerability of the Belarus-Lithuania state border. Dmitry Zavadski was given a suspended sentence of one and a half years in prison. He worked in Chechnia from October 1999 to May 2000 where, together with Pavel Sheremet, shot the “Chechen Diary” documentary for the ORT. On July 7, 2000 on his way to Minsk-2 Airport, where he was supposed to meet Mr. Sheremet, he mysteriously disappeared.
Enforced disappearance is a continuing phenomenon in one hundred countries based on the 2009 report of UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. The practice of enforced disappearances is now prevented by the existence of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance. The Convention was unanimously adopted by the UN General Assembly on December 20, 2006 and entered into vigor December 23 2010.To date, 91 states have already signed and 34 States have ratified the Convention. Belarus have not signed the treaty regardless appeals of the relatives of the disappeared Belarusians.
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