A Thousand of Brave Men
- 10.12.2007, 17:55
1000 of entrepreneurs have gathered together on Kastrychnitskaya (October) Square in Minsk to express their protest against Alyaksandr Lukashenka’s decrees which will ruin their business since the beginning of the new year.
Despite of the fact that there were not many of them, as compared with the total number of private entrepreneurs in Minsk, the participants could be called the brave.
As we have informed, the applicants for the rally Alyaksandr Makaeu, Alyaksnadr Tsetsura and Viktar Kryval were detained in the run-up to the rally. Dozens of policemen in mufti gathered on the square before the rally. People were threatened that the meeting would be disbanded with the help of special weapons. It seemed that there would happen nothing. But people were arriving to the square, then they unfurled streamers “Freedom to private enterprise!”, “No to Decree 760!”, “Decree 760 means thousands of new unemployed”. Honks of the cars passing by were bracing up the protesters. Portraits of the political prisoner Alyaksandr Kazulin were displayed in one of the cars. As reported later, the daughter of the political prisoner Volha Kazulina was the driver of that car. Later she was detained.
However, the entrepreneurs have managed to carry out the meeting on Kastrychnitskaya Square. Leaders of the entrepreneurs’ movement from Minsk and regions addressed the meeting from the stairs of the palace of Republic.
The beginning of the nation-wide strike since January 1, 2008 has been announced. Participants of the rally have adopted the resolution they planned to bring to the House of the Government. A protest against the presidential decree No. 760 is expressed there. Under that decree, since January 1, 2008 private entrepreneurs are banned to use labour of hired help with the exception of close relatives. “It will cause about 300,000 people lose their working places. The regime has made the first step by depriving the citizens of their social guarantees, and the second step would leave private entrepreneurs and their workers lose their working places,” the resolution underlines.
According to its authors, “this policy of the regime is anti-social, as thousands of people are doomed for ruin, as they cannot do without hired workers. Among them are single mothers, pregnant women and nursing mothers, disabled persons and large families”.
“We announce our intention to fight for our right for existence till the end. We shall hold a number of non-violent actions aimed against the decree No. 760. We call upon all private entrepreneurs to take their annual holiday since January 1, 2008 without paying the tax,” the resolution reads.
Speeches of the orators were deliberately killed by music from loud-speakers. Paddy wagons and a few buses with riot policemen were standing in the yards behind the Palace of Republic.
In an hour after the rally started, at 1 p.m., people started to move towards the House of Government, to submit the resolution to the authorities. The column of the demonstrators came up to the Independence Square convoyed by policemen in mufti. Officials from Minsk city executive committee and Economy Ministry came out to the square and took the resolution.
Among special demands of the entrepreneurs are a reversal of the discriminatory decree No. 760 of December 29, 2006,termination of prosecution of entrepreneurs for expression of their opinion, and fulfillment of 12 requirements of the European Union by the government. The requirements include respect for human rights in Belarus, fair trial and business activities without excessive interference of the state.
