English

Eyewitnesses appalled by crackdown on «silent» protest in Minsk

Police in plain clothes brutally broke up a "silent" anti-government protest in Minsk on July 3.

People had not been allowed to enter the small square in front of the entrance to the city's central railroad station.

Standing near the venue, a visibly angry middle-aged woman said, "I need to go and meet a foreign delegation, but they are not letting me there. Why? What have they turned Belarus into? Now is the 21st century! There are only security officials in power now, they should be ashamed."

Another woman echoed her remarks. "These shameful people want me to walk in dark corners rather than where I want and where I find it convenient. To think that things have gone to such a low," she said.

"It's outrageous," an elderly woman said. "They may not prevent people from expressing their opinion. What kind of a rule is it in a country at the center of Europe?"

Dozens of people were arrested during the crackdown. BelaPAN photographer Kseniya Avimava had her camera's object lens broken by one of the plainclothesmen.