S. Cichanouskaya: Belarusian opposition loses battle in the streets

The interview was announced in the run-up to Ms. Cichanouskaya’s trip to Switzerland, where she intends to urge local authorities to freeze the assets of authoritarian Belarusian President Aliaksandr Lukashenko.

However, he acknowledged that the opposition is losing the battle in the streets.

“We do not have the capacity to combat regime violence against protesters,” he said.

“They have weapons, they have strength, so yes, at the moment it seems that we have lost the streets,” stressed Cichanouskaya.

No quick fixes

“In Belarus, people want to see the light at the end of the tunnel, to think about the day when everything will be fine. Since they are waiting for a quick solution, now they are waiting for a fantastic plan … But there is no such plan,” said the leader of the Belarusian democratic forces who had left for Vilnius.

He urged Belarusians to build structures for “tomorrow’s struggles”, despite feelings of fatigue and fear.

“Our strategy is to be better organized, to constantly pressure the regime until people are ready to return to the streets again, perhaps in the spring,” Cichanouskaya said.

However, he stressed that this must be a peaceful revolution, adding that he does not believe he can ask Belarusians to put themselves in danger.

Cichanouskaya will travel to Switzerland in March if pandemic-related restrictions allow.

There he hopes to meet with the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, who the UN Human Rights Council condemned the human rights situation in Belarus.

The situation in Belarus will be discussed in the session of the UN Human Rights Council starting Thursday, as well as in the Bachelet report on the country.

The reproduction of information from the BNS news agency in the media and on websites without the written consent of the UAB “BNS” is prohibited.

Write a comment