The 26th of April 2006 was the 20th anniversary of the world’s worst nuclear disaster at the Chernobyl power plan. More than 10,000 people defied threats by the police and took the streets to commemorate the Chernobyl disaster which took place 20 years ago and to show their dissatisfaction with the Lukashenko regime. Milinkevich and other leaders leaders of Belarus’ opposition parties were arrested. (27-APR-06)

According to www.charter97.org
Photos by www.svaboda.org , Genady Mozheiko

Black day in the history of Belarus  
The 20th anniversary of the world’s worst nuclear disaster at the Chernobyl power plan was marked on the 26th of April. This catastrophe has affected each citizen of Belarus and has resulted in the death about of 200,000 persons (more information can be found on http://charter97.org/eng/news/2006/04/26/shlyah). However, the authorities do not say the truth about those events, about the real situation in contaminated areas, about real figures of the dead and afflicted persons. The democratic forces have urged the citizens of the country to gather for a traditional rally Path of Chernobyl (Charnobylski Shliahk).  “April 26 is the black day in the history of Belarus. It’s the day we should remember, in order we wouldn’t feel shame to look in our children’s eyes” -the democratic forces’ address underlines -“We have a right to demand truth from the regime”.

shlyah_big“Belarus has two disasters: Chernobyl and Lukashenka”.
10,000 Belarusian citizens took to the streets of Minsk for Charnobylski Shlyakh, a rally of the opposition that was sanctioned by the authorities.(see photos http://charter97.org/eng/news/2006/04/26/report).  Well-known politicians, scientists, public leaders, liquidators of the nuclear power station accident addressed the listeners.  This year the rally was held under the motto “Freedom. Truth. Justice”. Demonstrators were holding streamers with slogans: “For Freedom!”, “Belarus has two disasters: Chernobyl and Lukashenka”, “Radiation and dictatorship are killing us”, “Stop dictatorship!” The Belarusians protested not only against the official policy of hushing up the aftermaths of the catastrophe, but raised their voice against the dictatorship that has deprived them of the free choice and a right to elect a new president.

milinkevich1Milinkevich and leaders of Belarusian political parties are arrested.
During the rally “Charnobylski Shlyakh” the leader of the Belarusian Popular Front Vintsuk Vyachorka, three citizens of Ukraine and 8 other participants of the rally have been arrested. Vintsuk Vyachorka was sentenced to has got 15 days’ imprisonment. Alyaksandr Milinkevich himself, the chairman of the Communist Party Syarhei Kalyakin and the leader of the Party of Labour Alyaksandr Bukhvostau were arrested in the morning of 27 April by riot policemen. The opposition leaders are charged with organizing an “unsanctioned rally”. The politicians face arrest up to 15 days. Anatol Lyabedzka, the leader of the United Civil PartyYouth  was detained by the KGB officers leaders in the evening of the 26th and taken away in an unknown direction. He was bitten and examined, then at 1 a.m. released in a Minsk suburb. Yauhen Afnagel and Alyaksei Shydlouski and dozens of opposition activists in provinces have been detained preventively and released after 10 hours of detention.