MINSK (Reuters) – Belarussian Alexander Lukashenko said on Monday he would be ready to hand over power in a referendum, in an apparent bid to pacify mass protests and strikes, the biggest challenge for his 26-year-old son years in the office.
He made the offer, which he insisted would not be delivered while under pressure from Protestants, after exile opposition politician Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya said she was ready to lead the country.
In a sign of Lukashenko’s growing vulnerability, he hated and sang of ‘stepping down’ during a speech to workers at one of the major state-owned industrial plants who are proud of his economic model and the basic support of ‘ and Soviet style.
Russia has told Lukashenko it is ready to provide military assistance to Belarus in the event of an external threat. Lukashenko is facing the threat of European Union sanctions following a bloody collapse of protesters following what protesters say was his rigged recovery election last week. He denies loss, citing official results that gave him just over 80% of the vote.
Lukashenko told workers there would be no new presidential election, whatever the opposition wants, until he was assassinated.
He also called for changes to the constitution, an apparent concession that seems to satisfy Protestants.
“We will put the changes to a referendum, and I will hand over my constitutional powers. But not under pressure or because of the street, ”Lukashenko was quoted as saying by Belta official news agency.
‘Yes, I am not a saint. You know my hard side. I’m not eternal. But when you drag the first president, you drag your neighbors and everything down. ”
Speaking in a video address from Lithuania, opposition politician Tsikhanouskaya urged security and law enforcement officials to switch sides, saying they would be forgiven if they did so now.
“I am ready to take responsibility and act as national leader during this period,” Tsikhanouskaya said.
She called for the creation of a legal mechanism to ensure a new fair presidential election could be held.
Her video was released when Interfax reported that employees of city broadcaster BT had gone on strike after several attendees and staff publicly broke up last week in solidarity with the protesters.
The broadcaster showed up again Monday morning for the release of a new news bulletin. Videos on social media suggested that BT at one point had footage of an empty studio with white sofas, and music playing.
Reuters could not confirm this independently and the broadcaster could not be immediately reached for comment.
Thousands of Protestants marched in Minsk to a factory where Lukashenko flew by helicopter to talk to prominent workers.
He got a rough reception.
‘Thank you, I’ve said everything. You can write ‘continue’ (step down), ‘he said, after struggling to hear above demands that he stop.
He then walked away when the crowd shouted “Step down”.
The media outlet Tut.By reported that workers at Belaruskali, one of the largest potato producers in the world, are also threatening to stop production. The state-owned company, which is a major source of dollar revenue for Belarus, said its plant was still working.
Tsikhanouskaya is a former English teacher who has become one of the leading opposition figures.
She fled abroad last week, saying it was for the safety of her children, but soon began releasing videos calling for anti-government protests to continue.
The unrest has spread to those who are normally seen as loyal to the president, as workers from large state factories staged walkouts and some police, state media journalists, and an ambassador also came out.
The Kremlin said on Sunday that President Vladimir Putin had said that Lukashenko Moscow was ready to help Belarus in accordance with a collective military pact if necessary and that external pressure was applied to the country.
Leaders of the European Union will send a message of solidarity to Belarusian protesters during an emergency video conference on Wednesday, and Britain joined a chorus of Western condemnation.
“The world has watched in horror the violence that the Belarusian authorities have used to quell the peaceful protests that followed these fraudulent presidential elections,” said Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab.
Report by Andrei Makhovsky, Maxim Rodionov and Tom Balmforth in Moscow and Kate Holton in London; written by Matthias Williams; Edited by Andrew Osborn and Giles Elgood
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