Statkevich Warned Authorities About Protest On March 25

One of the leaders of the Belarusian National Congress has passed his statement to the Minsk city executive committee.

The politician has posted the text of the statement on Facebook:

– In accordance with the right, guaranteed by the Article 35 of the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus and international agreements, signed by our country, I intend to hold a March of disgruntled Belarusians in the city of Minsk on March 25, 2017. The route is as follows: from the Academy of Sciences to Independence Square along Independence Avenue. The rally starts at 14.00 at the Academy of Sciences.

Due to the expected large number of people at the March, for reasons of safety, I suggest to remove the traffic from the two right lanes of Independence Avenue to ensure free passage of march participants.

There is no legally elected parliament in Belarus and, accordingly, there’s no legitimate procedure for the implementation of the constitutional right to freedom of rallies and demonstrations. Therefore, in accordance with the practice of neighboring countries, I announce my intention to hold a mass rally on March 25 five days ahead of it.

I propose to meet the requirements of the Constitution and ensure free and safe conducting of the rally.