Mikalai Statkevich: Let’s Return Power To People

When power will be in the people’s hands, Belarus is to become a normal, successful country.

This statement has been made by the leader of the Belarusian opposition Mikalai Statkevich at the massive rally of sole traders, held on Kastrychnitskaya Square in Minsk today, charter97.org reporter writes.

“You have passed a good document,” – Mikalai Statkevich said concerning the resolution passed at the meeting: to demand unconditional cancelling of Lukashenka’s decrees №222 and №40 and continue protest rallies until it is done.

“But the key words are in the end there. They are: power to the people! Everything that happens to us, is happening only because the power had been stolen from our people. A certain person, who in a fair elections 22 years ago received the power for 5 years from the Belarusian nation, or rather was passed the opportunity to use the power under control – had deceived the nation and stolen the power from them.

He has stolen the elections, the opportunity to know how crafty he is, what he is doing and where his billions are hidden. He has liquidated independent press and TV, liquidated courts. In fact, he has taken over, occupied the country. Speaking in legal terms, the country had been seized by a gang. All structures in the country have turned into gang’s structures. There is no police – it’s a police belonging to one person – they are armed servants of one man. Judges and officials are the same – everything is for just one man.

And here is the result. If the people had the power – could it be working against the nation? Can the deputies, elected for 4 years, do something against us, when an independent court and independent press are following them, if they know that 4 years after the fair elections are to be held, and the people are going to throw them away from their seats?

And this man is sitting and thinks to stay there forever, and later to hand over the power to his children. And that’s the reason he does not give a damn what we are going to think about him.

The situation is going to get worse and worse until the people return the power in their hands. The people won’t do anything bad to themselves: they won’t deploy foreign military bases, for them to be bombed later, won’t make themselves an appendix of another country, posing an extreme threat to the world, won’t kill the most active people, and won’t imprison the innocent.

Let’s return power to the people! Only in this case we would be able to live a normal life. When the power is in the hands of the people – Belarus is going to be a normal, successful country,” – Mikalai Statkevich stated.

The address of the opposition leader was interrupted many times by chanting: “Long live Belarus!”, “Statkevich is our president!” and “Mikola!”