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Opposition set to stage march in Minsk to celebrate 20th anniversary of State Sovereignty Declaration

Opposition organizations plan to stage a march in Minsk on July 27 to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the adoption of the State Sovereignty Declaration, Vital Rymashewski, co-chairman of the Belarusian Christian Democracy party, told reporters on June 3, as quoted by BelaPAN.

The organizers will apply to the Minsk city government for permission to stage the march, Mr. Rymashewski said, adding that its route had not yet been decided upon.

A number of other events will also be held to mark the anniversary, including a conference on July 26, he said. He expressed hope that the conference would be attended by "the people who had direct involvement in the adoption of the declaration."

Flower-laying ceremonies will be held near the monuments to literary greats Yanka Kupala, Yakub Kolas, Maksim Bahdanovich and other outstanding figures who paved the way for the country's independence, Vyachaslaw Siwchyk, leader of a group called Razam (Together), said at the news conference. Such ceremonies require no official permission from the city authorities and the organizers do not plan to apply for it, he said.

On July 27, activists of the Belarusian Popular Front will hold rallies in the provinces, said the party's chairman, Alyaksey Yanukevich.

The Declaration of State Sovereignty of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic was a formal document adopted by the Supreme Soviet (national legislature) to assert the country’s independence from the Soviet Union. Adopted on July 27, 1990, some two weeks after Russia declared its own sovereignty, the Declaration started the process to Belarus` eventual independence in August 1991. Until 1996, the 27th of July was celebrated as Independence Day in Belarus.