Belarusian Association Of Journalists Reports Arrest Of Two Members In Minsk

Umer Jamshaid Published July 16, 2020 | 01:20 AM

MINSK (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 16th July, 2020) Two journalists were briefly arrested in Minsk as they covered how citizens en masse submitted petitions to Belarus' Central Election Commission over its refusal to register two opposition candidates to run in the upcoming presidential election, the Belarusian Association of Journalists said on Wednesday.

Earlier in the day, a Sputnik correspondent reported from Minsk that people lined up in front of the election commission's building to submit petitions in support of opposition candidates Viktor Babariko, the former head of Belgazprombank, and Valery Tsapkalo, former ambassador to the United States. Police reportedly intervened after the� the building's working hours were officially over, requesting people to disengage and conducting scattered arrests over non-compliance.

"On the evening of July 15, journalist Anton Trofimovich of Radio Liberty and part-time correspondent Violetta Savchits were arrested in the center of Minsk," the association said on its website.

According to the press release, the journalists were arrested around 7:40 p.m. (16:40 GMT) and then release approximately an hour later.

As reported by Sputnik's correspondent, after the Central Election Commission closed, some of the people who came to petition in person headed to the central post office to mail their petitions, but found the office closed an hour earlier than normal. Some of them said they would try to reach a round-the-clock post office located in vicinity.

The Belarusian capital's center remained majorly inaccessible throughout the day as law enforcement blocked several streets and the subway management closed three central stations.

As Belarus gets closer to its presidential election on August 9, public protests continue to flare up in support of opposition candidates who were not allowed to run.

On Tuesday, more than 250 people were detained during protests in several cities. Six police officers were injured in clashes with protesters.