Constitution Day action in Homel held under vigilant supervision of police

On 15 March Homel oppositionists held an action in honor of the Constitution Day. They went to the stops of the public transport with copies of the Constitution of 1994 and the newspaper "Narodnaya Volia" (as a symbol of free press).

The action was held under a vigilant supervision of the police – each of the activists was accompanied by one-two policemen. Among the participants there was human rights defender Anatol Paplauny. "We want to convey to the society the thought that Belarus has the Constitution which is not that bad, but the extent to which it is implemented in the sphere of human rights, such as freedom of peaceful assemblies, freedom of expression, the right to receive and impart information, etc. is a separate issue. We tried to act within the legal framework of the Constitution, but there are some inferior legal acts which hinder the realization of these rights. These acts have been adopted by the local authorities. Take for instance, the ruling of Homel City Executive Committee concerning the order of holding rallies in pickets – it creates many obstacles to the realization of the constitutional right," emphasized Mr. Paplauny.

The police also paid a special attention to journalist. A policeman approached Larysa Shchyrakova who was shooting the action on video, and asked whether she had a permission for shooting the video or journalist accreditation.