Europe's human rights prize to Belarusian prisoner

October 04, 2013 - A major human rights prize of Europe has been awarded to a jailed activist in Belarus. The first 60,000-euro ($81,000) Vaclav Havel Human Rights Prize was awarded on Monday to Ales Bialiatski, the head of the Vyasna rights group. Bialiatski was sentenced to 4 1/2 years in jail in November 2011 after a trial the West condemned as politically motivated. The prize was given by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. The council is a major human rights organization. Vyasna has provided legal assistance to thousands of Belarusians who were fined, arrested or imprisoned for challenging President Alexander Lukashenko's authoritarian policies. Lukashenko has been dubbed ``Europe's last dictator'' by some in the West. Vyasna spokeswoman Tatyana Revyako said the prize could help raise pressure for Bialiatski's release. (Source: AP)