Riot Police Surrounded Cafй Attended by Solidarity Action Participants

Yesterday at 8 p.m. about fifty young opposition activists gathered near the railway station. The action was organized by the unregistered organization Young Front. The police dispersed the action, 2 students were detained.

Three leaders of Young Front are already serving court sentences – Zmitser Dashkevich – in minimal security prison, and Paval Seviarynets and Artur Finkevich – in labor open-type prisons.

The action participants set up a stand with portraits of all current political prisoners in Belarus. They put candles around the stand and formed a chain holding portraits of the prisoners.

The police began to disperse the action. The majority of young people ran away. The police detained two students – a girl and a guy. The guy had an exam the next day.

Later the police released the detained students.

Several action participants ran away and hid in the Rosticks cafй near the station. In 1.5 hours the policemen surrounded the cafй and demanded from them to leave the cafe. At the same time, they brought a special bus for transporting the detained to the doors of the cafй. Head of the riot police threatened that they would use violence against the action participants if they don’t leave the cafй on their own.

Thirty minutes before the closing hour the activists left the cafй in couples, heading to different directions. They managed to mix with the crowd of people who got off the local trains. Young Front members told RFE/RL, none of the action participants were detained.

The solidarity actions were also carried out in all regional centers, as well as in Baranavichy, Zhodzina, Salihorsk, Barysau, Niasvizh and other cities, reports RFE/RL.