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“We respect and promote human rights. Therefore, Škoda will refuse to support the 2021 Hockey World Championship if it is confirmed that Belarus will be the organizer of this event,” the company reported on the social network Twitter.
Škoda has been a member of the International Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Championships for 28 years.
Men’s cosmetics brand NIVEA MEN also announced on Friday that it will not support the championship if it is held in Minsk.
During a meeting with Aliaksandr Lukashenko on January 11, IIHF President René Faselis complained that the federation was under pressure due to problems in Belarus.
Mr. Lukashenko said that his country was ready to host the championship without Latvia and that it would be “the best ever”. The authoritarian leader has promised that people who come to Belarus will not be in any danger.
Belarus has been plagued by massive protests since August 9 over Lukashenko’s presidential elections since 1994.
The opposition and western democracies claim that the elections were rigged and that their winner is seen as political rookie Sviatlan Cichanouskaya, who replaced her imprisoned husband in the presidential fight.
The protesters are demanding the resignation of Lukashenko, the release of political prisoners and new elections.
Chichanouskaya has indicated that a new package of EU sanctions on the Minsk regime will be discussed in Brussels in early 2021.
One of the problems started by the Belarusian opposition is the relocation of the Minsk World Hockey Championship. It is scheduled to take place in Latvia and Belarus from May 21 to June 6. The final decision on the location of the tournament has yet to be made.
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