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– Alexander Lukashenko is like a person who hides from people, he is not a winner. The Belarusian people are the winner of this battle. Svetlana Tikhanovskaja told NRK in connection with a video meeting she had with Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Søreide on Wednesday.
Tikhanovskaya emphasizes that the opposition continues to fight. People are already the winner because they have overcome fear, while Lukashenko has not, he believes.
GRATEFUL: Opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya is delighted with the support she is receiving from Norway and other Western countries in the fight against the Lukashenko regime.
Photo: NRK
– All you have is violence, but we don’t want to respond with violence. We are peaceful people. We want to solve this problem peacefully and in accordance with international law, says Tikhanovskaya.
Read more: Belarus: the opposition wants a big strike, but the support is not clear
– No failed strike
The opposition leader recently issued an ultimatum to Lukashenko. If he did not resign before midnight last Sunday, the opposition would launch a major strike in Belarus.
SUPPORT: Minsk students boycott teaching in solidarity with the strike called by the opposition.
Photo: STRINGER / AFP
In some of the state factories in the country, several workers have stopped working. But according to the authorities, production is largely normal.
The aim of the strike is to paralyze the Belarusian economy and increase pressure on Lukashenko. But so far the opposition does not appear to be close to this.
– Support for the strike is not as great as we would have liked, but it has not failed, Tikhanovskaja tells NRK. She points out that Belarusians who support her are exposed to great violence by the police.
HUMAN SEA: About 200,000 people participated in the demonstration against Lukashenko last Sunday in the Belarusian capital.
Photo: BelaPAN / Reuters
Last Sunday, about 200,000 people participated in the weekly demonstration organized by the opposition. This shows that Lukashenko’s opponents still have wide support. But many Belarusians fear losing their jobs if they join the strike.
Also read: Dispute at the UN Human Rights Council: – The situation in Belarus is catastrophic
Will exclude students
Thousands of students from Minsk universities have boycotted classes in recent days to show their support for the opposition strike.
SQUEEZE: President Alexander Lukashenko said yesterday that students participating in opposition protests should be expelled from universities.
Photo: Nikolai Petrov / AP
In a meeting broadcast on national television yesterday, Lukashenko threatened protesting students.
– Students who break the law should be expelled. They can be sent to the army or just put on the street, Lukashenko said. He stated that Belarus is facing a “terrorist war” on several fronts, and that this must stop.
VIOLENCE: The Belarusian police use water cannons, stun grenades, tear gas and rubber bullets against protesters. Many are abused in connection with arrests.
Photo: AP
He also advocated that teachers, doctors, and other government employees who support the opposition’s actions lose their jobs.
Read more: – It is about removing a dictator, says Erna Solberg about Belarus
