The Prosecutor General’s Office of Belarus may go to court with a demand to recognize one of the symbols of protest in the republic – the white-red-white flag – as extremist symbols. This was reported by the publication SB Belarus Segodnya, controlled by the presidential administration.
According to the newspaper, a “group of concerned citizens” turned to the prosecutor’s office, who considered that the flag was created to “incite hostility and hatred in the Belarusian society.” They asked the state prosecutors to help achieve a ban on the canvas in order to stop the “color revolution” in the country. The department promised to respond to the request of the initiators in the near future.
If a symbol is recognized as extremist, for its production and use, according to Belarusian legislation, activists may receive heavy fines or go to a colony.
In Belarus, protests have continued for the sixth month since the presidential elections on August 9, 2020. The actions are harshly suppressed by the security forces. Tens of thousands of people were detained, and many spoke of torture and beatings in isolation wards. Four people were killed in clashes with security forces.
One of the symbols of protests in Belarus is the white-red-white banner. In 1991-1995, it was the state flag of the republic. In the 1995 referendum, the majority of Belarusians voted to replace it with a red-green one, reminiscent of the flag of the Belarusian SSR. President Alexander Lukashenko, who took the presidential oath of office in 1994 under the white-red-white flag, believes that the banner is directly related to the Nazis.