Head of Vitsebsk branch of "For Freedom" movement demands that the police and medics abide by the law

The head of Vitsebsk regional branch of the "For Freedom" movement Khrystafor Zhaliapau filed a lawsuit to Kastrychnitski District Court of Vitsebsk against the refusal of Vitsebsk city polyclinic to conclude an agreement for serving the Freedom Day rally.

The activist considers this refusal as groundless and asks the court to oblige the medics to conclude the agreement for serving the mass event appointed on 25 March. The conclusion of agreements with the public utilities, police and medics is the main conditions of the authorization of mass events by the executive authorities. This demand is also presented in an appropriate ruling of Vitsebsk City Executive Committee. However, it proved to be impossible to implement it during the recent years, as far as some of the aforementioned institutions periodically refuse to conclude service agreements. Apart from the polyclinic, the activist also received a refusal from Vitsebsk Region Police Department.

Mr. Zhaliapau states that according to the Civil Code of the Republic of Belarus certain services, including medical institutions, must conclude agreements with citizens on a commercial basis, and refusals in this case are inadmissible. The activists consider them to be politically motivated and apply to court seeking the protection of their freedom of expression. According to paragraph 4 of Article 415 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus, the court can force the evading side to conclude such agreement.

Mr. Zhaliapau applied to the medics as early as 25 January in order to conclude the service agreement and received a refusal on 11 February. The date of the court hearings on his latest appeal (concerning the forced conclusion of the service agreement) hasn't been appointed so far.

What concerns the refusal of Vitsebsk Region Police Department to conclude a similar service agreement, Mr. Zhaliapau has filed an appeal against it it the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

The formal reason for the refusal was that the service agreement could be concluded after Mr. Zhaliapau brought the permission for the action from Pershamaiski District Executive Committee of Vitsebsk. Thus, the police violated the provisions stated in the ruling of Vitsebsk City Executive Committee, according to which actions can be authorized only after conclusion of the service agreements – which means that the appropriate institutions must conclude them without pointing at the absence of permission from the authorities.