Revolution spirit

Belarus: Despite postelection crackdown and jail terms, a determined opposition lives on in former Soviet republic | Jamie Dean

Giorgi Viazovski's 10 days in a Belarus jail confirmed something he already knew: "The freedom of religion we were promised in the 1990s is closed." Police in the capital city of Minsk arrested the Reformed Baptist pastor for holding church services in his private home without registering with the state under a 2002 law that drastically limits evangelism and distribution of Christian literature and makes some church activities subject to state approval.

A Minsk judge sentenced Mr. Viazovski to 10 days in a cold, crowded cell with no contact with the outside world. Two weeks after his release, the 48-year-old pastor told WORLD that he won't register his church under a law that is "anti-evangelical. . . . It's a matter of conscience."