Updated at 17:53,27-03-2024

Perspektyva urges authorities to respond to stall closures at markets

Maryna NOSOVA, Naviny.by

Perspektyva, a small business association, has called on authorities to provide a proper reaction to massive stall closures at markets and shopping malls across Belarus.

Many stalls have remained shut since the start of the year as their holders are afraid of punishment for failure to comply with Alyaksandr Lukashenka`s edict that bans the sale of footwear and clothing without accompanying documents.

In its statement, Perspektyva says that stalls have been shut at 90 percent of all markets and shopping centers in what it describes as the «collapse of the retail consumer market».

«These events have happened as a result of negligence by bureaucrats who failed to pay proper attention to the situation and ignored multiple proposals from the business community», says Perspektyva.

The empty markets and shopping malls are evidence of the government`s mistakes that may eventually leave some 500,000 people without a living, according to the association.

The statement urges the government to «return to the path of reason and make timely, smart decisions with consideration for the opinion of market vendors».