Freedom Day demonstration in Vitsebsk banned

Vitsebsk Kastrychnitski District Court has turned down a joint complaint by local pro-democratic activists Khrystafor Zhaliapau, Aliaksei Haurutsikau and Yan Dziarzhautsau against an earlier decision by the city’s executive committee to ban a manifestation and a meeting to celebrate the anniversary of the proclamation of the Belarusian People’s Republic on 25 March.

The court upheld the ban, supporting representative of the executive committee Mrs. Iryna Puchkova, who argued that mass events could only be held in locations enumerated on the list of authorized venues.

The executive official also said the ban was issued after a local hospital claimed that the manifestation would interfere with the traffic.