BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

14/10/2007

Police curtail marchers in Belarus

Tensions in the streets of the Belarusian capital, Minsk, have been high as an EU-sponsored march came into contact with police forces.

Hundreds of students and opposition organization members participated in the event on Sunday.

The demonstrators from the start of the march defied government orders to hold the rally in a residential district of Minsk outside the city centre, DPA reported.

The march originally had been planned jointly by the EU and the Belarusian government as a first step towards improving relations.

The demonstration in spite of its theoretical apolitical nature quickly became a focus for anti-government activists.

Police using loudspeakers warned demonstrators that if they did not retreat, force would be used against them.

Close to 500 opposition activists were arrested or otherwise placed under police control in the weeks leading up to the march.

Source:

http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=27070§ionid=351020606