"In All Countries, Government Helps Unemployed, Our Officials Have Decided Otherwise"

The court in Rechytsa upheld the ban on the "parasite" protest rally.

On June 10th, Judge of Rechytsa District Court Sviatlana Pyrkh refused to satisfy the complaint of Homel activist Maryja Tarasenka about the ban on the protest march, which was planned to be held in the district center as a protest against the notorious decree on "parasites", Homel Viasna reports.

According to Maryja Tarasenka, the first trial against the ban on 25 peaceful protests was held in the region to draw attention to the problems of those who have lost their job or can't find it.

"Since the beginning of the year, the state has calculated my water bills as 5.5 times more than for those who have jobs. Heating and gas prices will rise several times from autumn. I believe that this social injustice must be combated. In all countries, the state helps those who cannot find a job, our officials have decided otherwise, and the courts, as we can see, take their side," – the woman is sure that she is right.

Human rights activist Leanid Sudalenka, who assists the activist in protecting her rights, says that all 25 bans on peaceful actions and expression of opinion will be appealed in courts.

"Today, the human rights situation in the country is not in favor of citizens. The main law does not oblige everyone to be employed, and the decree invades the private life, actually forcing the unemployed to work, puts them in inequality before the law due to their social status. The Constitution guarantees everyone the freedom to hold peaceful assemblies, while the law contains a number of disproportionate restrictions that actually exclude this right, which we see in practice," – the lawyer commented on the situation.

He also added that it's not too late for the government to give up the idea of sorting people into categories based on their social status by selling housing services to the unemployed with a surcharge of more than 500%.