Arrests Follow Picketing Of Minsk Executive Committee :: Charter'97 :: News

The protest against demolition of the old building of a former synagogue in Minsk finished by arrests of two activists of the International Association of Belarusian Jews, Yakov Gutman and Vladimir Rubinchik. Yakov Gutman and Vladimir Rubinchik stood in front of the Minsk executive committee with posters: “Temple demolition is the destruction of the world! “People! Save Minsk synagogue in Dimitrova Str., 3, a monument of Belarusian and Jewish culture”.

At the place where the monument of the culture of the 19th century is situated now, “Komkon” company decided to build block of flats. City officials at first gave a permission to ruin a former temple, but later the Council of Ministers suspended this decision of the Minsk executive committee.

Meanwhile the builders have ruined 70% of the synagogue on Tuesday, thus ignoring the decision of the government.

Yakov Gutman believes that that was done due to the silent consent of the city authorities. Picketers tried to attract attention of the officials and to penalize those who are guilty in this uncivilized business.

But instead of the top officials they attracted attention of the police personified by Nikolay Kudinov, the deputy head of the police department of the Moscow district. He ordered to take the protesters to the Moscow district police station, where the reports on the administrative offence were drawn up. The court was put off for Tuesday, as the offenders asked for lawyers’ attendance at the court.