In Belarus, the pressure on President Lukashenko is growing. State-owned companies are now on strike. That could hit the economy hard. The protests in the country continue.
Minsk (AP) - Five days after the controversial presidential election in Belarus (Belarus), people in many state-owned companies went on strike against head of state Alexander Lukashenko on Thursday.
In the capital Minsk and other cities in the country, workers gathered to demand that Svetlana Tichanovskaya be recognized as the true winner of Sunday's presidential election. Thousands of women with flowers in their hands formed human chains on the streets, according to several media in Belarus. "Flowers instead of bullets" could be read on posters. Protesters called on Lukashenko to resign.
The 65-year-old was initially silent about the protests on Thursday. It was unclear how the situation in the country between Russia and the EU member Poland would develop. A mass strike in companies could seriously damage the economically troubled country. Employees at the BelAZ automobile plant reportedly demanded that the vehicles produced there not be delivered to the police, who recently brutally cracked down on demonstrators.
Protests took place for the fourth time in a row that night. According to observers, there was less police violence than in the previous days. Nevertheless, according to the Interior Ministry, security forces arrested around 700 demonstrators. This increases the number of those arrested to almost 7,000. In front of prisons, many people peacefully requested the release of their relatives. It is unclear how many of those arrested have already been released.
The Wesna Human Rights Center (Spring) once again complained of "excessive police violence". Rubber bullets and stun grenades were said to have been fired at peaceful demonstrators. The uniformed men violently broke up protests in more than ten cities in the country. Police in Gomel city confirmed the death of a 25-year-old who, according to his mother, was arrested on Sunday on the way to his girlfriend and died in hospital.
Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, meanwhile, announced significantly more pressure on the power apparatus in Minsk. The SPD politician said the day before the planned special meeting of the EU foreign ministers on Belarus was being discussed intensively with the partners about new sanctions. It is perfectly clear that the actions of the security forces in Belarus "are not acceptable in Europe in the 21st century". However, all EU member states must unanimously agree to punitive measures.
Russia expects the situation to calm down soon. "We actually expect the situation in the country to normalize and calm down soon," said the spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Sakharova, in Moscow. Russia calls on everyone to show restraint and prudence. So far, Moscow has hardly commented on the events in the ex-Soviet republic. Belarus is economically heavily dependent on its permanent ally Russia. Sakharova emphasized that foreign countries are fueling the protests.
The Belarusian Association of Journalists spoke of massive violence against media workers. More than 60 journalists have been arrested in the past few days. Meanwhile, more and more prominent employees of the state media are resigning in protest. Among them is the prominent presenter of the state television, Yevgeny Perlin, who dropped his well-paid post in view of the "lies" and "violence".
Many videos were circulating on Telegram in which men burned their uniforms or threw them in the garbage or demonstratively tore off the state emblems in protest against the violence against demonstrators. Family fathers could also be seen calling on their colleagues to renounce violence. The authenticity of these videos cannot be verified.
Since the presidential election on Sunday there have been bloody protests with many injured every day. The election commission awarded Lukashenko 80.08 percent of the vote. His opponents, on the other hand, see the 37-year-old candidate Tichanowskaya as the winner. She fled to the EU country Lithuania under pressure from the authorities.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 200813-99-147641 / 8
Website of the Central Election Commission
OSCE on election in Belarus
Official website of Lukashenko
Youtube channel of the opposition Strana dlja Schisni
Campaign by Svetlana Tichanovskaya
Human rights organization Wesna in Belarus
State Agency Belta
Tweet from the Lithuanian Foreign Minister
