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The FDFA commented on the brutal crackdown on peaceful protesters and expressed concern about the fate of government critics.
Protest demonstration in Minsk: a frightened boy clings to his mother, who is standing with other people in front of masked policemen. (September 8, 2020)
Photo: Valery Sharifulin (Getty Images)
The police arrested the protesters who attended the rally in support of Maria Kolesnikova. (September 8, 2020)
Photo: Keystone
Since the elections more than four weeks ago, there have been daily rallies and protests in Belarus. (September 8, 2020)
Photo: Reuters
After her disappearance, the well-known opposition politician Maria Kolesnikova was arrested in Belarus according to border guards. The opposition stressed that he should be removed from the country against his will. However, according to the authorities, he allegedly wanted to travel to Ukraine. His whereabouts were initially unclear. The opposition demanded his immediate release. The 38-year-old is one of the main leaders of the protests against the authoritarian head of state Alexander Lukashenko.
According to the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), Switzerland is very concerned about the fate of opposition figures in Belarus. In an appeal Tuesday on Twitter, the FDFA named Maria Kolesnikova, Ivan Kravtsov and Anton Rodnenkov.
“We call for dialogue,” wrote the FDFA. The Berne Department of Foreign Affairs demands that the Minsk authorities immediately stop the crackdown on peaceful demonstrations.
In the evening, numerous people gathered in Minsk in solidarity with Kolesnikova. The footage showed how masked forces brutally arrested at least a dozen protesters and dispersed people.
Kolesnikova disappeared without a trace on Monday. According to border guards on Tuesday, she is said to have been taken to a border crossing in the south of the country with her employee Ivan Kravtsov and her spokesman Anton Rodnenkow. Kolesnikova tore up her passport at the border to avoid a forced departure, the two men later said at a press conference in Kiev. She then returned to the Belarusian border crossing, where she is said to have been arrested. Her colleagues crossed the border into Ukraine because they feared they would also be arrested. “Maria is a real hero,” Rodnenkow said. You do not want to leave Belarus under any circumstances.
Lukashenko said in an interview with journalists from Russian state media that Kolesnikova allegedly wanted to flee to Ukraine with her sister. Border officials prevented them from doing so.
Opposition confirms arrest
Kolesnikowa, 38, who lived in Stuttgart for many years and led Kprosultur projects there, is one of the most important members of the opposition. Some of the members of the Coordination Council had been previously arrested or left the country. Kolesnikova works for former bank director Viktor Babariko, who wanted to run for president.
According to the authorities, the arrest was made to “clarify the circumstances.” No details were given. The opposition also confirmed the arrest, but had no further details. She received information that Kolesnikova was being held in a prison in the south of the country.
It is said that he tore his passport to prevent him from leaving for Ukraine: Maria Kolesnikova during a press conference in August.
Photo: Sergei Bobylev (Getty Images)
Ukraine’s Deputy Interior Minister Anton Gerashchenko spoke on Facebook of an attempted deportation. “Maria Kolesnikova could not be deported from Belarus because this brave woman made her deportation across the border impossible through her actions.”
The Coordination Council initially assumed on Monday that Kolesnikova had been abducted by strangers in the center of the capital, Minsk. Observers also doubted the description of border protection and spoke of a selective approach on the part of the authorities. Kolesnikova repeatedly appeared in protests against Lukashenko and was cheered on by protesters. She herself had stressed that she did not want to leave the country.
The opposition party Svetlana Tichanowskaja demanded the immediate release of her campaign partner. “The task of the coordination council is to be a platform for negotiations,” said the 37-year-old, who faced the head of state and is in the EU country Lithuania. “There is no other solution, and Lukashenko has to acknowledge this.” He couldn’t just take people hostage. He wants tougher sanctions against the government, he told a Council of Europe committee.
Lukashenko: “This is not an opposition”
The background to the protests is the presidential elections of more than four weeks ago. Lukashenko was then declared the winner with 80.1 percent of the votes. However, the opposition considers Tichanovskaya to be the real winner. The vote is criticized internationally for being grossly falsified.
Also read our analysis on Belarus: The president hardly dares to talk to people anymore
In the interview with Russian state television, the president refused to hold talks with members of the opposition. This is not an opposition. Everything it offers is a disaster for Belarus, ”he said. The 66-year-old claimed that his opponents wanted to “cut ties with fraternal Russia.” Minsk, on the other hand, wants further integration with Moscow. The two countries agreed to closer cooperation 20 years ago on a state of the Union treaty.
The opposition wants a coordinating council achieve a peaceful change of power through dialogue. Their representatives had given the authoritarian leadership several talks. In addition, the agency wants to continue working with Russia.
Lukashenko has been in power for 26 years. He said, “Yeah, maybe I’ve been in the position a bit longer. Maybe they will show me not only on television, but also on every corner. “
