Salihorsk District Council refuses to lift peaceful assembly restrictions

The Presidium of the Salihorsk District Council of Deputies has not granted a request of Leanid Markhotka, local representative of the Belarusian Helsinki Committee, to abolish illegal restrictions on street protests imposed by the district executive committee. The human rights activist is going to write to the Minsk Regional Council of Deputies.

Decision No. 427 by the Salihorsk district executive committee was adopted on 27 February 2015 and entered into force on April 4. According to local human rights activists, the document does not meet the standards of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which is directly applicable in the territory of the Republic of Belarus. The activists say that the restrictions imposed by this decision are disproportionate and unacceptable in a democratic society.

“The fact is that the Presidium is not authorized to make such decisions. In my address, in accordance with the applicable law, I asked to review my proposal and a draft decree “On freedom of assembly in Salihorsk and the Salihorsk district” at a session of the Council and in my presence. Chair of the Council Lidziya Klishevich and the Presidium she chairs wrongly refused to present my project to the deputies during a regular session. In deciding on their own, they directly exceeded their authority. Of course, I will complain to the Regional Council, as they obviously broke legislatively fixed procedures and regulations,” says Leanid Markhotka.