Belarusian Opposition Leaders Call On West To Return Sanctions Against Lukashenka

Lukashenka has brought the country to the state of the most acute crisis since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

This is stated by Belarusian opposition leaders Stanislau Shushkevich, Andrei Sannikov and Mikalai Statkevich.

Here is the text of the statement:

– These days, a wave of popular protests against the dictatorial regime of Lukashenka is rumbling on in Belarus. The last straw, which has made the cup of people’s patience run over, has become the notorious Decree No. 3, the so-called decree "against parasites". This decree demonstrates that the regime, which has seized power in Belarus, considers the citizens to be its slaves, with whom one can do whatever he likes. The Belarusians endured for a long time, but years of patience could not destroy either people’s self-respect or their desire to live in free Belarus.

Today, the people demand the resignation of Lukashenka and the liquidation of his authoritarian regime. They realize that if nothing is changed in the near future, they will be on the brink of survival. Lukashenka has brought the country to the state of the most acute crisis since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The regime responded to the people’s demands to carry out reforms to prevent the impoverishment of the population by Lukashenka's expensive family trips, the construction of new residences for the dictator and the complete disregard for the people's needs. The regime hopes to sit it out again and then, with the help of monetary injections into the dictatorship from the East or the West, to continue its policy of destroying our state.

The dictator believes that he can still intimidate the people and unleash repression against active citizens of Belarus with the help of the Kremlin. Sordid arrests of activists for participating in peaceful protests have been held in Belarus again. Well-known Belarusian politicians A.Liabedzka, V.Rymasheuski, Y.Hubarevich, dozens of activists in the regions of the country have been arrested.

We call upon the citizens of Belarus not to succumb to the pressure from the outgoing regime’s punitive agencies, to demonstrate solidarity and protect everyone, against whom violence is used and whose rights are violated.

We remind the citizens of Belarus that, according to the Constitution, they have the right to freedom of opinion, freedom of expression, freedom of assembly and peaceful demonstrations, and that the existing authorities have obligations to observe these rights.

We call on the international community to stop flirting with Lukashenka's regime, to deprive him of any financial support and to support the people of Belarus in their demand to hold fair elections.

We demand that all people, who were detained during peaceful protests, should be immediately released and that apologies should be brought to them for moral damage.

We call on the European Union to reconsider its decision to lift the sanctions against the Lukashenka’s regime and we urge it to return the entire package of sanctions until the repressions against political and civil activists, independent journalists are stopped completely.

We urge politicians of democratic countries to show solidarity with the people of Belarus struggling for their rights.

We call on the citizens of Belarus to defend their rights more decisively, to present their legitimate demands to the regime's officials at all levels and to insist on holding early elections in Belarus under international control.

Long live Belarus!

Stanislau Shushkevich, the first head of independent Belarus, the chairman of the Belarusian Social Democratic Hramada

Andrei Sannikov, coordinator of the civil campaign "European Belarus", presidential candidate in the 2010 elections

Mikalai Statkevich, chairman of the Belarusian Social Democratic Party (People's Hramada), presidential candidate in the 2010 elections