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Conservative Christian Party loses appeal against warning

The Conservative Christian Party (CCP) has lost its appeal against a warning issued by the justice ministry last year.

The Supreme Court took sides with the ministry earlier this month, rejecting the party’s appeal.

The warning to the opposition party led by émigré nationalist politician Zyanon Paznyak was issued last December over the "distribution to government agencies of a letter aimed at incurring the dislike and hatred of the Russian ethnicity."

The ministry said that the alleged letter "insulted citizens' feelings over their Russian descent" and contained "biased information about the policy of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus in bringing the Belarusian and Russian peoples closer to each other, and harsh defamatory attacks on the national policy of the Russian Federation, the Russian people and their history."

“An analysis of the situation shows that authorities likely wanted to punish the party,” CCP Acting Chairman Yury Belenki told BelaPAN. “We do not violate laws today, but someone does not like our activities.”

The politician said that the warning had been issued by “politicians who lobby the Russian Federation’s interests.”

“A situation where violations of regulations are in question is one thing. But a situation where a ministry is represented in court by a man who in fact acts as a representative of the Russian Federation is quite different,” the politician said.

Mr. Belenki noted that the warning could be part of the government’s move to close down the party.

He dismissed the Supreme Court’s ruling as “absurd and biased.”