 RFE/RL Belarus, Ukraine, and Moldova Report 12/23/2009 3:52:42 PM A review of RFE/RL reporting and analysis about Belarus, Ukraine, and Moldova. For more stories on Eastern Europe, please visit and bookmark our Eastern Europe page . |
| Belarus  Belarusian Rights Activists Dress As Santas To Protest Law A group of some 20 Belarusian rights activists -- some dressed as Santa Claus and snow maidens -- marched in downtown Minsk today to give lawmakers a petition protesting restrictions on the public activities of unregistered organizations, RFE/RL's Belarus Service reports. More  Belarusian Activists Blindfolded, Dumped In Forest In what could mark a worrying new trend in Alyaksandr Lukashenka's Belarus, two prominent opposition activists say they were briefly abducted over the weekend by assailants they believe are tied to the secret services. More  'Finally, We Called It Christmas Again' “I can’t stand this anymore,” she said. I looked around, at the bleak platform, at the mass of gray, drab-looking people, at the old train pulling into the station with a long screech. It was freezing cold, and the somber atmosphere just made everything feel even colder. More  Romania's Revolution: A Graphic Novel I was surprised a few years ago by a request for an interview on how I remembered the 1989 Romanian Revolution. I amazed that the request was by my 15-year-old daughter. More  Romania's Revolution: The View From Arad We recently encouraged readers to submit their photos from the revolutionary days of 1989, in Romania and elsewhere. We thought the contributions (photos and text) of one of our readers merited special attention. More Four Moldovan deputies officially announced today they are leaving the Communist Party's parliamentary group to form an independent parliamentary bloc, RFE/RL's Moldovan Service reports. More  Chess, Poker, And Kickboxing In Moldovan Politics There is a complex game playing out in Chisinau, combining elements of three-dimensional chess, no-limits poker, and bare-knuckled kickboxing. More  Russia Marks 130 Years Since Stalin's Birth Russia is marking the 130th anniversary of the birth of Soviet leader Josef Stalin with medals and marches in his honor, as well as an exhibition that shows his crude and vindictive side. But even as many Russians continue to revere Stalin as a strong leader, others remember his cruel legacy as the man responsible for millions of deaths during his nearly 30-year rule. More  Kasyanov's Book Premiere Blocked The presentation of a book by Russian opposition figure Mikhail Kasyanov has been blocked in Kyiv, RFE/RL's Ukrainian and Russian services report. More  Three Arrested In Ukrainian Radioactive Sale Police in Ukraine's western province of Lviv arrested three people this week for attempting to sell radioactive material, RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service reports. More  Ferrero-Waldner: For EU's East, Generations To Change Benita Ferrero-Waldner served five years as the EU's external relations commissioner before making way on December 1 for the bloc's new high representative for foreign policy, Catherine Ashton. In an interview with RFE/RL, Ferrero-Waldner cautions the bloc's Eastern neighbors to accept the fact that the reforms needed to make them ready for the EU could take "generations." More  Kazakh Court Dismisses Rights Activist's Appeal An Almaty regional court today rejected an appeal from jailed human rights activist Yevgeny Zhovtis for his case to be reviewed, RFE/RL's Kazakh Service reports. More |
