Rights activists in Belarus say the government has detained opposition activists and blocked access to popular social networking sites in an attempt to prevent protests on a national holiday.
Belarus is holding a military parade Sunday in celebration of Independence Day, the anniversary of the end of Nazi occupation in 1944.
The night before the government began blocking access to social media sites that activists have been using to organize a new wave of street protests. The activists do not carry signs or chant anti-government slogans, but instead walk through the streets clapping in unison.
The respected Vesna rights group says dozens of opposition activists have been detained, including Stanislav Shushkevich, Belarus’ first post-Soviet leader.
