Brest Authorities Prohibit Human Rights Picket

On 7 December Ihar Maslouski, head of Brest organization of Belarusian Helsinki Committee, received the refusal from the local authorities to his application for holding of a picket devoted to the Day of Human Rights on 11 December.

Viachaslau Khafizau, vice-chair of Brest City Executive Committee, stated the CEC didn’t permit to hold the action because the application of the organizers didn’t meet the requirements, containing no “measures to guarantee the observance of the public order and security, medical service and cleaning of the territory after the action”.

According to Mr. Maslouski, during the picket he and other human rights activists intended to celebrate the anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and turn the public attention to the difficulties of the independent press (in private, the problems with distribution of Brestskiy Kuryer newspaper).