Translated material
Opposition leaders were detained in Belarus after the “March of Non-Parasites”
In the Belarusian city of Molodechno, where on March 10 another "March of non-parasites" took place, the police detained several organizers and participants of the action, including leaders of the Belarusian opposition.
In particular, the co-chairman of the unregistered party "Belarusian Christian Democracy" Vitaly Rymashevsky, the chairman of the United Civil Party Anatoly Lebedko and the leader of the movement "For Freedom" Yury Gubarevich, as well as the correspondent of the publication "Belapan" Sergei Korolevich were detained. The exact number of detainees is unknown.
According to TUT.BY, during the arrest, Rymashevsky was told that an “administrative process” was underway against him.
According to TUT.BY, BSDP (Hramada) member Alexander Abramovich, BCD activist Olga Kovalkova and 16-year-old Denis were also detained after the rally.
- The "non-parasite marches" began in Belarus shortly before February 20, 2017 - until that day, about 470 thousand citizens of the country had to pay a fee known as the "parasitism tax" in the amount of about 360 Belarusian rubles (11 thousand Russian rubles).
- The fee was introduced in 2015 by President Alexander Lukashenko for those who officially worked less than six months a year.
- On March 9, Lukashenka postponed the payment of the “parasitism tax” for a year. He promised that the tax decree would be amended but not repealed. On the same day, he demanded that by May 1 there should be no unemployed in the country.