A concert by Lithuanian composer Faustas Latenas has taken place within the framework of the International Music Festival “Minsk Spring 2008”. Famous Lithuanian musicians performed their works in the Great Hall of the Belarus State Philharmonic.

"His name is Anton and he urgently needs heart transplant surgery. This operation can only be undertaken in Germany and will cost 250,000 Euro with 100,000 Euro required as an advance payment. This amount will pay for the operation itself plus 30 days of post-operative medical care, however up to 250,000 Euro more may be required to cover the costs of implantation of supplementary equipment in a subsequent operation.  Therefore, in total up to 500,000 Euro may be needed. At the present time 45,000 Euro have been donated by inhabitants of Gomel so only 55,000 Euro more is needed to complete the advance payment.

Demonstrations were staged in Lithuania's Vilnius and Estonia's Narva on April 16 in solidarity with Belarusian political prisoners and opposition youths standing trial in Minsk for their participation in a January 11 entrepreneurs' protest.

Increasingly more members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) are starting to speak against the isolation of Belarus, Konstantin Kosachev, head of the Russian delegation to PACE, said in an interview with RIA Novosti ahead of PACE’s spring session, which opens in Strasbourg on April 15. 

Ceremony of awarding with the most prestigious Theatre Europe Prize took place in Greek Thessaloniki. The Belarusian Free Theatre received special recognition of jury for New Theatrical Reality.

Visa sanctions against a number of Belarusian officials have been extended for another year; comments of European and Belarusian politicians and analysts.