Dozens of protesters sentenced in Belarus

MINSK, July 8 (Itar-Tass) --Belarussian courts on Thursday sentenced
dozens of detained protesters to administrative arrest ranging from five
to fifteen days for petty hooliganism.
A journalist of the BelaPAN news agency, Ales Asippov, who covered the
protests this week, was sentenced by a court in Mogilev to 10 days in
custody, rights activists said.
They said eight out of nine district courts of Minsk considered 98
cases in close-door trials against activists who were detained during
silent protest actions in the capital on Wednesday.
Seventy cases were considered by Thursday night and only three
protesters, including a 68-year old woman, were released and sentenced to
a fine.
Rights activists estimated close to 400 people were detained in
Belarus during protests on July 6 against President Alexander Lukashenko,
including 190 people in Minsk. Eye witnesses said many passers-by were
also detained. As in previous demonstrations, protesters did not chant
slogans or brandish banners but merely stood in silence, clapping their
hands.
In the meantime, the United States denounced on Thursday the harsh
crackdown on the opposition by the Belarussian government.
"The United States condemns the increasingly heavy-handed tactics
employed by Belarussian authorities against demonstrators and journalists
during the weekly peaceful protests which began in early June," State
Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said and called for "immediate and
unconditional" release of political prisoners.
"We urge the government of Belarus to release those detained, to
respect the rights, including freedom of assembly, of the people of
Belarus," she said.