Hearing of Mikhalevich vs Sovietskaya Belorussia case postponed for Monday

The hearing of the lawsuit filed by Ales Mikhalevich, a deputy chairman of the Party of the Belarusian Popular Front, against Sovietskaya Belorussia newspaper and its reporter Artsyom Chalyadzinski, has been postponed for Monday. Chalyadzinski is a pseudonym of Pavel Yakubovich, the editor-in-chief of this presidential mouthpiece.  In the January 11 issue, Sovietskaya Belorussia published an article which mentioned opposition politicians Ales Mikhalevich and Alexander Milinkevich as the people who "never in their life" raised and sold a bucket of potatoes. Mikhalevich felt offended and filed a lawsuit against the newspaper.

Apart from denouncement, Mikhalevich seeks to compensate his moral damages with Br6160 ($3), the price of a bucket of potatoes in Belarus.

The first hearing today lasted for 35 minutes. Yakubovich filed a request to review the case in his absence. According to the lawyer for the presidential newspaper, Pavel Yakubovich "used a literary method" in the publication.

Ales Mikhalevich commented on the postponment of the hearing to the European Radio for Belarus. He said::

"I can interpret this as the court's desire to get instructions from the authorities. It is no secret that the judges are appointed personally by the president. Sovietskaya Belorussia newspaper is the official mouthpiece of the presidential administration".