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EU calls on Belarusian authorities to enter into dialogue with sole entrepreneurs

The European Union is urging the Belarusian authorities to enter into dialogue with sole entrepreneurs, Cristina Gallach, spokesperson for EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana, told BelaPAN.

Ms. Gallach said that the EU Council was “disappointed over the fact” that police used force to break up Thursday’s rally held by sole entrepreneurs in downtown Minsk.

The EU condemns jail sentences that were handed down to some 20 demonstrators grabbed at the rally, Ms. Gallach said, adding that the 27-nation bloc saw each of the sentence as “politically motivated.”

The EU official called on the Belarusian authorities to respect citizens’ right to peaceful assembly.

The EU Council hopes that the Belarusian authorities will permit a rally that sole entrepreneurs plan to hold in Minsk on January 21 and the event will pass off peacefully. The EU will closely follow the situation, Ms. Gallach warned.