Hrodna: picket banned, police inspector warns people about responsibility
Hrodna human
rights defenders were the last in Belarus to be denied a picket on 4
August in support of the imprisoned head of the HRC "Viasna"
Ales Bialiatski. Human rights defender Uladzimir Khilmanovich
received an appropriate letter from the Brest City Executive
Committee on 3 August. Thus, athwart the legal terms (5 days before
the event), the applicants learned about the ban of the picket the
day before its holding.
The denial, signed by the deputy head
of the Hrodna City Executive Committee Z. Kulesha, is dated 1 August
2013. Uladzimir Khilmanovich, Viktar Sazonau and Raman Yurhel
responded by filing a new application, for holding the picket on 19
August.
The official reason for the ban on the picket is the
failure of the applicants to present service contracts with for the
maintenance of public order, health care and cleanup.
In the
evening of 2 August the local police inspector paid a visit to Raman
Yurhel to warn him about administrative responsibility for carrying
out unauthorized activities. It's quite interesting, as the policeman
didn't have the decision about the ban of the picket at hand. The
policeman proposed Mr. Yurhel to sign that he was warned about the
legal responsibility. Instead of it, the latter made a record about
the illegality of such a warning.