18 protests banned in Salihorsk in 2012
Eighteen mass events have been banned by Salihorsk town authorities since the beginning of the year alone, with six more pickets banned on 2 February, local human rights defender Uladzimir Shyla says.
The Salihorsk authorities have recently banned six events organized by the local civil and political activists. The formal reason in all cases is alleged violation of Article 8 of the Law “On Mass Events” - placement of information about the actions on the web before their authorization.
Members of the Mahiliou region branch of the Belarusian Leftist Party “Fair World” intended to hold a picket at 12 a.m. on 28 January in order to protest against the people's pauperization. The picket was to have taken place at the “Khimik” stadium, the only place determined for opposition's actions by a special ruling of the city authorities. However, the authorities refused to authorize the action. The alleged reason is that a mass sportive event will be held at the stadium at the specified time.