The Minsk City Executive Committee has once again rejected an application for permission to demonstrate near the Russian embassy to protest Russia’s military intervention in Ukraine, the news agency Belapan reported at 18:46 Kyiv time.
According to the press office of the Movement for Freedom, the organization’s activist, Tatsyana Hrachanikava, wanted to stage the one-person demonstrations on September 25 and 26.
In its reply to Ms Hrachanikava, the Minsk city government says that the “mass event will not help the preservation of elements of landscaping and greenery, may obstruct pedestrian and vehicular traffic and distract drivers from following traffic rules.”
In addition, the application does not specify measures to maintain public order and safety during the “mass event,” the letter says.
Officials are exercising their imagination and saying absurd things, commented Artsyom Lyava, an activist of the Movement for Freedom.
“It turns out that one cannot either stand or walk if even a one-person demonstration creates such serious obstacles,” he said.
Earlier this month, Mr Lyava and his associate Ales Marchanka announced an intention to file applications every day to obtain permission for protests near the Russian embassy. They invited other people to join the campaign. Demonstrations scheduled for September 19 and 20 were banned on the grounds that Messrs Lyava and Marchanka had recently been punished under the Civil Offenses Code. Activists of the Movement for Freedom are expected to file more applications in the coming weeks.
Photo: 1marta.org
