Rally on Freedom Day permitted

(updated) Gathering of participants — on March 25 at 15:00 near "October".

The Minsk authorities permitted to hold the Freedom Day rally on March 25. However, they changed the time of gathering. People are expected to come to Kastrychnik cinema at 15:00. The rally will begin at 16:00 and end at 18:00.

Leader of the BPF party Aliaksei Yanukevich, who applied for the rally, wrote it on Facebook.

“The Minsk city executive committee allowed holding a rally and a march on March 25. We'll gather at Kastrychnik cinema at 15:00 and go to Peoples' Friendship Park to have a rally there at 17:00.

Organisers will hold a press conference at the BPF headquarters at 13:00 on March 20,” Yanukevich wrote.

As charter97.org learnt from the press service of the organising committee to create the Belarusian Christian Democracy party (BCD), it is prohibited to use “banned slogans and unregistered symbols” during the rally.

“The authorities apparently fear that a large number of people could come to the rally. They changed time of the event so that few people cannot attend it due to work,” Maryna Khomich, the leader of Young Christian Democrats and one of the applicants, said.

“Such a reply is in fact a ban, because 90% of people won't be able to come. Such a reply is a display of fear of any mass gatherings. It violates freedom of assemblies. Such a panic reaction of the authorities can be explained with advertising of the rally in social media. The authorities called the applicants and warned them that advertising in social media could influence their decision,” Vital Rymasheuski, a co-head of the BCD organising committee, said.

The Freedom Day rally will be held in Minsk on March 25. Organisers planned to gather at Kastrychnik cinema at 17:00 and go to Peoples' Friendship Park at 18:00 to hear speakers and a concert of Belarusian musicians with the slogan “Together for Peace and Independence”.