Amnesty International is gravely concerned at reports that about 100 demonstrators were detained, and some allegedly ill-treated by police, following a peaceful protest on 10 March 1997 against President Lukashenko’s policies aimed at forging closer ties with the Russian Federation. Amnesty International is calling for the immediate release of any demonstrators held solely for exercising their right to freedom of assembly, and for the authorities to initiate an investigation into all allegations of ill-treatment by police.
