BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

23/03/2007

US urges Belarus to end harassment of protesters

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States on Friday urged Belarus to end harassment of political opponents in Belarus after reports authorities there were clamping down on dissent ahead of a protest rally.

"The United States is deeply concerned about ongoing intimidation by the authorities of Belarus toward NGO activists, political party leaders and young people in advance of a planned peaceful demonstration in Minsk on March 25," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said in a statement.

"We urge the government of Belarus to allow its citizens to exercise their right to assemble peacefully and express their views without harassment or interference," he added.

"It is also essential that security forces exercise restraint against demonstrators."

Opponents of Belarus's authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko say police are arresting activists on flimsy pretexts such as swearing, and opposition gatherings have been banned on Minsk's central Oktyabrskaya Square.

The rally planned for Sunday comes a year after unprecedented protests in the capital against presidential elections in which Lukashenko was overwhelmingly declared the victor.

Ales Belyatsky, the head of the human rights group Vyasna in Belarus, told AFP police had imprisoned activists hoping to rally with key opposition leaders including former presidential candidate Alexander Milinkevich.

McCormack's statement said: "We reiterate our concern for the well-being of all prisoners held on politically motivated charges and call for their immediate release."

Source:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070323/pl_afp/belaruspoliticsus_070323164819

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