On April 26 Deputy Chief of Mission of the US Embassy in Minsk Jonathan Moore visited an activist of the youth movement Artur Finkevich, who is serving an imprisonment in Mahilyou.
The Belarusian Helsinki Committee declared that 26 April during the peaceful demonstration ”Chernobyl Way” in commemoration of consequences of the Chernobyl disaster the militia interfered with the march and endangered the safety of the participants, pushing the demonstrators to those parts of the street, which were under the repair.
20 May the action against cancellation of benefits will be held in Minsk. It is to be mentioned that the bill on cancellation of benefits for students, children, pensioners, liquidators of consequences of the Chernobyl disaster is to be adopted at the spring session of the “house of representatives”.
On April 26 two meetings have taken place in Mahilyou, official and oppositional ones. Both of them were held in the outskirts of the city. The official one was held on the territory of the radiation medicine hospital, and the oppositional one near the largest city cemetery. Nothing reminded if the date of Chernobyl catastrophe in Mahilyou. Even flags with black ribbons were not set up, Radio Svaboda informs.
This week several actions in support of political prisoners have taken place in Lahojsk, Minsk region. A streamer “Freedom to Political prisoners!” was placed by oppositionists over a bridge on the border of the town on the highway Minsk-Polatsk. It is a rather busy spot, and the streamer has been seen by hundreds of drivers over several hours. Dozens of graffiti “16” and a slogan “Freedom to political prisoners!” have emerged in the center of the city.
Today the editor-in-chief of Narodnaya Volya newspaper Iosif Syaredzich is to visit a plice department of Smalyavichy district. “Policemen are holding back last copies of independent newspapers “Narodnaya Volya” and “Tavarysh”, he told to Radio Svaboda.
Today at the press conference arranged by the organizing committee of the Chernobyl Way and the BNF Party the Belarusian policymakers summed up outcomes of the yesterday’s action. “Our aims set up before the Day of Freedom and Chernobyl Way actions have been attained”, Vents Vyachorka declared. We got the confirmation that the street action potential of the people remains. We are satisfied that lots of young people participated in the yesterday’s action. It means the succession of generations because 6-7 years ago mostly adult people participated in street actions. . Today’s young generation does not back the regime. They are ready to struggle, to come out into the streets. Unfortunately despite of the peaceful nature of the demonstration the people were detained.
Well-known Belarusian literary scientist Uladzimir Sodal was outraged of beating of the Chernobyl Way peaceful participants by the militia after the action 2006.In particular, U. Sodal who is going to celebrate his 70 years anniversary and his spouse were also beaten near Bangalor Square when they were coming back home after the action.
Organizers of the rally Sharnobyski Shliakh are going to file a complaint to the prosecutor’s office for actions of Minsk police which during Charnobylski Shliakh protest rally exposed to danger lives and health of people while they marched along Surhanau Street. We are also set to appeal against illegal seizing of sound-amplifying equipment, against illegal arrests and beating up of people after the rally,” told one of the applicants for holding the rally, an activist of the Belarusian Popular Front party Yury Zyankovich.
A rally “Path of Chernobyl” has taken place in Minsk. These are the first pictures in the beginning of the action. Riot policemen cordoned off Yakub Kolas Square.
15 thousand Belarusians took part in the Chernobyl Way action which is traditionally held in Belarus 26 April. The authorities were in their element: the center of the city was full of enforcement regiments, Yakub Kolas Street where it had been planned for the participants to meet was blocked. Those who tried to go beyond the authorities` scenario were severely beaten. They threatened to use special devices against the participants. The Minsk authorities even endangered the people`s lives –the road inspection and special militia regiment pushed the people to the sidewalks which were under reconstruction. Nevertheless, despite of all the hardships the people came out into the streets and their number was really large, taking into account all the difficulties which they had to overcome.
The authorities and militia purposefully endangered lives of the Chernobyl Way participants. The militia and road inspection ordered the people to walk over sidewalks of Surhanau street which are now being repaired. It was impossible to walk there because there were heaps of rubbish, holes , pieces of brick and asphalt, builders` wagons. The action organizers and participants several times appealed to heads of the militia and special regiment and to the road inspection for allowing people to walk over the road at least in those parts of the street where it was impossible to walk on the sidewalks. But they with crazy persistence were ordering through the loudspeakers to walk over the broken road. Obviously the Naymiha stampede didn`t teach militia anything because nobody answered for the lost 53 lives.
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