Fifteen members of new opposition youth group called Maladaya (Young) Belarus demonstrated in downtown Minsk on October 29
demanding the release of jailed associate Alyaksandr Barazenka. For 25 minutes, the youths stood shoulder to shoulder near the central
entrance to the Palace of the Republic, where the pro-government Belarusian
National Youth Union was holding a convention, defying police officers' calls
to disperse. The police did not intervene.
Barazenka, who was charged in early 2008 over his participation in an
unsanctioned demonstration and placed on the police wanted list after he fled
prosecution, was arrested following his visit to the Minsk city police department on Monday. He
was placed in a detention center pending a decision on his release until trial.
According to the Web site of the Charter 97 opposition group, Barazenka failed
to appear at his trial because he was attending a university in Poland.
