Minsk: Chernobyl protest rally

20 years ago, an accident happened at the Chernobyl nuclear plant, that covered major parts of the territory of Belarus with radioactive waste, resulting in increase in illnesses such as cancer, and making parts of Belarus uninhabitable.

At the time, the authorities tried to hide what happend, and pretend that there was no danger. Wikipedia says: the initial evidence in other countries that a major exhaust of radioactive material had occurred came not from Soviet sources, but from Sweden

In Belarus, Chernobyl has become a symbol of genocide of authorities againt their own people. "Chernobylski Shliah" is a protest rally held yearly.

Radio Svaboda is reporting on-line from Minsk:

The Oktyabrskaya Square is blocked:


More photos

By the Akademia Nauk metro station there are around 300 people and buses with speznaz troops.

In the morning, Milinkevich was summoned to the city prosecutor's office, and reminded that breaking the public assembly rules was a criminal offence. Another opposition leader, Aleksaner Lebedko, seems to have disappeared. He was supposed to attend a meeting at 2pm, and according to his wife, left home at 1pm, but has not been seen since, and his cell phone is not answering.

Radio Svaboda reports detentions on the Oktyabrskaya Square. A thousand people are moving towards Akademia Navuk metro station, where another two thousand people have gathered.