Committee of Concerned Scientists

An international non-profit organization of scientists, physicians, engineers and scholars dedicated to protecting the human rights and scientific freedom of our colleagues around the world.

An independent non-profit organization of scientists, physicians, engineers and scholars dedicated to protecting the human rights and scientific freedom of our colleagues around the world.
  • Home
  • About Us
    • Annual Reports
    • Contact Information
    • History
    • Leadership
  • CCS Active Case Updates
  • Human Rights Resources
    • Human Rights Orgs
    • General HR Res
    • US Govt Agencies
  • Donations

Deputy Dean of the Franco-Belarusian Faculty of Political and Administrative Sciences Detained at Minsk Airport

August 5, 2021

Tatiana Kouzina was detained at the Minsk Airport incommunicado for hours on June 28th. On July 14th she was charged with “conspiracy or other acts committed to seize or hold state power, and of calling to perform acts detrimental to national security.” These charges would carry up to 12 years in prison. She is now under a two month detention. It appears that her charges are in retaliation for freedom of expression.

August 4, 2021

Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko
President of the Republic of Belarus
Independence Palace, Parspiekt Pieramozcau Avenue
Minsk, Republic of Belarus
Fax: +375 17 226 06 10

Dear President Lukashenko:

The Committee of Concerned Scientists is an independent organization of scientists, physicians, engineers, and scholars devoted to the protection and advancement of human rights and scientific freedom for colleagues all over the world.

This communication is in regard to Tatiana Kouzina. On June 28th, she was detained at the Minsk airport passport control on her way to Georgia on unknown charges and without allowing for communication with anyone else for several hours. On July 14th, the charges were declared to be “conspiracy or other acts committed to seize or hold state power and of calling to perform acts detrimental to national security” for which she faces up to 12 years in prison. In the meantime, she is now under a two-month detention.

Kouzina, who holds an MA in Political Science, is the co-founder and researcher at the School of Young Managers in Public Administration in Belarus. She previously lectured at the European Humanities University in Vilnius, Lithuania (formerly in Minsk) where she served as Deputy Dean of the Franco-Belarusian Faculty of Political and Administrative Sciences and headed the Office of Public and International Relations.

The Committee is concerned that the charges against Kouzina are brought in retaliation for the nonviolent exercise of the right to freedom of expression and are part of a recurring pattern of arbitrary arrests in Belarus intended to silence any potential criticism. Her arrest is a setback for the future of public administration studies in Belarus.

We write to urge you to ensure that Kouzina is treated fairly, that she is provided with adequate medical treatment, and regular access to family and independent legal representation, that are not bound by nondisclosure agreements. We further urge that whatever legal proceedings are held in her case meet international standards for fair trials, including not being held behind closed doors. If the charges are simply political in origin, she must be released immediately and unconditionally.

Thank you for your attention to this serious matter. We will be closely following developments in this case.

Sincerely,
signatures
Joel L. Lebowitz, Paul H. Plotz, Walter Reich, Eugene M. Chudnovsky, Alexander Greer
Co-Chairs, Committee of Concerned Scientists

Cc:
Antony J. Blinken
Secretary of State
U.S. Department of State
2201 C Street, NW
Washington, DC 20520 USA
Phone: (202) 647-4000
Twitter: @ABlinken

Filed Under: Belarus Tagged With: Tatiana Kouzina

Who We Are

Co-chairs

Joel L. Lebowitz, Rutgers University

Paul H. Plotz, M.D., Washington, DC

Walter Reich, George Washington University

Eugene Chudnovsky, Lehman College

Alexander Greer, Brooklyn College

Vice-chairs

Astronomy – Arno Penzias, New Enterprises Associates*

Biology – Max E. Gottesman, Columbia University

Chemistry – Zafra Lerman, MIMSAD Inc.

Computer Science – Rachelle Heller, The George Washington University

Computer Science – Jack Minker, University of Maryland, College Park

Engineering – Philip Sarachik, NYU Polytechnic School of Engineering

Mathematics – Simon Levin, Princeton University

Medical Sciences – J. Joseph Blum, Duke University

Honorary Board Members

Nancy Andrews, Duke University

David Baltimore, California Institute of Technology*

Alan J. Bard, University of Texas

Jacob Bigeleisen (deceased), SUNY, Stony Brook

Raoul Bott (deceased), Harvard University

Owen Chamberlain (deceased), University of California, Berkeley

Stanley Deser, Brandeis University

Edward Gerjuoy, University of Pittsburg

David Gross, (2004 Nobel Prize in Physics), Kavil Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of California, Santa Barbara*

Pierre Hohenberg (deceased), New York University

Walter Kohn (deceased), University of California, Santa Barbara*

James Langer, University of California, Santa Barbara

Peter Lax, New York University

Louis Nirenberg, New York University

Marshall Nirenberg (deceased), National Institutes of Health*

Honorary Board Members

John C. Polanyi, University of Toronto*

Stuart Rice, University of Chicago

Sir Richard J. Roberts, (1993 Nobel Prize in Physiology & Medicine), New England Biolabs*

Myriam Sarachick, City College of New York

Harold Scheraga, Cornell University

Sylvan Schweber (deceased), Brandeis University

Maxine Singer, Carnegie Institution of Washington

Alfred I. Tauber, Boston University

Steven Weinberg, University of Texas, Austin*

Myrna Weissman, Columbia University

Rosalyn S. Yalow (deceased), Mount Sinai School of Medicine*

* Nobel laureate

Search Site

Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Search in posts
Search in pages
Filter by Categories
Additional Information
Angola
Annual Reports
Australia
Bahrain
Belarus
Belgium
Brazil
Bulgaria
Cameroon
CCS Board
CCS Cases
Chile
China
Colombia
Cuba
Egypt
Ethiopia
France
Germany
Good News
Greece
Highlights
History
Human Rights Resources
India
Iran
Iraq
Israel
Italy
Malaysia
Morocco
North America Issues
Pakistan
Pakistan
Palestinian Territories
Peru
Petitions
Poland
Press
Previous Highlights
Prominent Cases
Related Articles
Reports
Russia
Saudi Arabia
Spain
Sudan
Swaziland
Syria
Thailand
Turkey
Turkmenistan
Uganda
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates
United Kingdom
United Nations
United States
Uzbekistan
Venezuela
Vietnam

View Results in New Window...

Browse by Country

Archives

Join Us

Become a member of our humanitarian enterprise.

Sign up

Support CCS

Remember to register with AmazonSmiles as a donor to the Committee of Concerned Scientists. Then anytime you shop there CCS will receive a donation from Amazon. Since people spend a lot during this time of year it can benefit CCS greatly if you remember to do this. There is no additional cost to you.

FURTHER DIRECTIONS

Translate This Page

Click on the flags or use the menu below for a translation of this page.

[google-translator]

Press Enter to Search

Like us on Facebook

Committee of Concerned Scientists

c/o Alexandra R. Bender, Executive Director
P.O. Box 4525
Easton, PA 18043
Phone: (570) 994-2093
abender@concernedscientists.org

Copyright © 2023 • Concerned Sci Child Theme on Genesis Framework • WordPress • Log in