Belarusian human rights’ activist Ales Bialiatski wins Vaclav Havel human rights prize

Jailed Belarusian human rights’ activist Ales Bialiatski is historically the first winner of the Vaclav Havel human rights prize, the Council of Europe announced on Monday. The prize is awarded jointly by Parliamentary Committee of the Council of Europe in cooperation with the Václav Havel Library and the Charter 77 Foundation. Ales Bialiatski who heads the Minsk-based Viasna Human Rights Centre was selected out of 27 candidates for his tireless efforts in defending human rights in Belarus. He is currently serving a 4.5 year prison sentence for alleged tax evasion.