Natallia Radzina: Lukashenka Must Resign

We hope that not only Lukashenka’s "yes-men" will be present at today's press conference.

Charter97.org site editor-in-chief Natallia Radzina commented to the TV channel Belsat on Lukashenka’s today’s press conference, pretentiously called "The Big Talk" by propaganda.

– Let’s not come back to the story why you can’t live and work in Belarus, we know very well about the political persecution. However, if we imagine a fantastic situation: something has gotten into Lukashenka’s head and he decides to respond fully, sincerely, without twisting at the press conference. What would it be worth asking him about?

– I do not have any questions to Lukashenka. I can only say to him that he must resign. After all, he is a complete bankrupt, who has brought the country to the state of catastrophe. Therefore, Lukashenka can do nothing but resign. In this practically desperate situation in which he has now found himself, I can give him only one piece of advice – to start the dialogue with the opposition.

If he wants to keep Belarus an independent state, if he cares about his future fate and about his life, there is the only option left for him – to negotiate with the opposition, because it is obvious that Lukashenka has lost, has messed the things up, his incompetent management has brought the country into a terrible economic situation, while the opposition has just proved to be right talking about human rights, reforms and the market economy.

– Should we expect that anyone will voice these aspects today?

– I would like to hope that there will be not only backing dancers and "yes-men", but there will be people who are able to bring up topics important for the country. But, honestly speaking, I do not see any point in taking part in these events. It is clear that Lukashenka is being hysterical at the moment. To this end, he arranges this show, this demonstration and summons the khural. He's got this kind of psychological makeup – he needs to speak out in a difficult situation. So today we are going to hear a lot of interesting things, but, generally speaking, nothing today depends on this man any more. What kind of questions can one ask him?

– Probably not just a lot of interesting things, but rather a lot of tongue-slips, memes, there is plenty of them every year and every year independent media journalists are there. But why are there never many sharp questions?

– We all know how independent media work in Belarus today – it is quite hard, it is impossible to function completely independently, that is why the Charter 97 site has to be located in Warsaw today. I understand that journalists are really scared to ask pointed questions in this situation.

– There could be another reason why Lukashenka summons the khural apart from being hysterical, he perhaps just feels hysterically lonely and just needs someone to talk to, when everything is cracking down today.

– He should talk to the opposition. Today it is the only option. In general, today the situation is similar to the one in 1989 in Poland. We see what Russia is doing: it is reducing oil supplies to Belarus, the gas issue has still not been resolved. Today it is blocking the border with Belarus. But why? Obviously, it's not only about the five-day "no visa" regime, which Belarus is introducing for foreigners. In the first place Russia is blocking Lukashenka's smuggling. Lukashenka has been deprived of the "black" money that he used to get from smuggling Ukrainian and European products through Belarus.

This is yet another serious crack-down on Lukashenka’s regime. This is another step to his removal from power. The dictator realizes that and this is the reason for his hysteria and his desire to talk, to speak out to the public, but if he still has any remains of sanity left, anything human at all, he must sit down and negotiate with the opposition on holding free and fair elections. And then resign.

– But it might be the old hackneyed banal game: to summon a lot of people and talk to them for hours and probably to say something unexpected under the brand name "it is not me, it's the people, who asked me to do it."Could it be that tomorrow Lukashenka, who has been driven to hysteria and despair will dare to make some serious statements? This dialogue with the opposition: who is to meet the other side halfway? Are there any people on the other side who are ready to do it?

– Mikalai Statkevich says it: for the sake of the independence of the country opposition can sit down at the negotiating table with Lukashenka. But we need to talk about fair and free elections, about reforming of the market, about how to really change the situation and, of course, about Lukashenka's quitting the power.

Look how the "round table" was held in Poland in 1989. Today, Lukashenka need to talk with the real leaders of the opposition, and not with the dummies. Of course, not with Dzmitryeu, but with Mikalai Statkevich, Andrei Sannikov, Uladzimir Niakliaeu, Hennadz Fyadynich and others.

– In this case there is an increasing risk of repetition of the modified scenario, as it happened with the aggression against Ukraine, when Yanukovych tried to move towards Europe first, and it became the basis for the Russian aggression. Should we pay attention to such an argument?

– Lukashenka's fate is sealed. It is clear that Russia will change him, he is an inefficient manager who has spent a huge amount of Russian resources: money, oil, gas. The Kremlin is demonstrating us every day that they plan to remove him. Lukashenka understands it very well: he fires and arrests high-ranking officials, he has behaved hysterical today during a live television broadcast.

He has no other choice but either to simply be replaced or to be killed one day, or to take any real steps towards changing the situation in the country and to peacefully, quietly resign. The dictator is no other options.

In this situation the West is to support the idea of the "round table" in Belarus, as we see that in a difficult situation Lukashenka, in principle, can agree to have a conversation. He has never had such a stalemate before.

Europe and the United States should not secretly negotiate only with Lukashenka, because there were such dialogues with Hosni Mubarak and the Egyptian people revolted, and there were such conversations with Viktor Yanukovich, but the Ukrainians took to the Euromaidan.

The opposition represents the Belarusian people today. Local riots begin in the country. People are very dissatisfied, wages have dropped to miniscule amounts and will continue to fall. There are enormous stuff reductions at enterprises, there are stuff cuts even in the police. And in this situation, the West has all the tools to force Lukashenka to perform reforms, to negotiate with the opposition. And this will guarantee the security of the West in this situation. Because Lukashenka cannot be the guarantor of the sovereignty of Belarus. The guarantor of the sovereignty of Belarus – Belarusian people.

– Clear! It turns out that there really is a need to talk, not for the public, not for khurals, but with the Belarusian people.