Opposition activists in Vitsyebsk seek permission for demonstration in solidarity with political prisoners

Opposition activists in Vitsyebsk have applied to the city government for permission to stage a demonstration in support of political prisoners on October 29.

Organizers Khrystafor Zhalyapaw, a coordinator of the Movement for Freedom, and Alyaksey Hawrutsikaw, a leader of the Narodnaya Hramada party, plan to demonstrate in solidarity with Mikalay Statkevich, Ales Byalyatski, Eduard Lobaw and other imprisoned opponents of Alyaksandr Lukashenka.

They want the demonstration to take place in a park designated by the city authorities as a venue for mass events.

According to Mr. Hawrutsikaw, the organizers originally planned to stage the demonstration on a Saturday or Sunday, but the city’s ambulance service said that its staff could be available only on a weekday. The organizers of all demonstrations in Belarus are required to secure the presence of an ambulance and police at the venue and a cleanup at the site after the event.