Yauhen Afnahel: People Realise That Belarus Is Possible Only Without Lukashenka

This is the best time for change in the country.

Leaders of the Belarusian National Congress, presidential candidate Mikalai Statkevich and coordinator of the European Belarus civil campaign Yauhen Afnahel met with residents of Maladzechna on Friday, June 14.

Yeuhen Afnahel reported details of the meeting to the Charter97.org website.

- How did this meeting differ from the previous ones - in Mahiliou, Hrodna and Barysau?

- The first point is that many more people came to the meeting than we expected. Therefore, it had to be moved from the room to the street, to the yard of the house where we originally planned to meet.

The second point: there were a lot of young people. Probably half of all those present were under 30 years old. Accordingly, the issues that were more interesting to young people prevailed: from employment, prospects, self-actualization, study - to contemporary art, music, history of Belarus, national idea.

This is a radical difference of the meeting in Maladzechna. And it was very interesting, because in other towns, in Barysau, for example, we discussed mainly the economic and social problems that interest middle-aged and older people. And in Maladzechna we discussed issues that concern the near future of the people willing to create a new Belarus without dictatorship.

Thirdly, Maladzechna has strong democratic traditions: it is the city of Hennadz Karpenka, a town whose toponymy includes the names of Kanstantsin Astrozhski and many other heroes of Belarusian history. This has also had an impact on the atmosphere of the meeting and people's questions. A lot has been said about how to defend the independence of Belarus in the event of a referendum on unification with Russia and further threats to our sovereignty.

Even rather than "how to protect" independence, it was "how to get" an independent country, because people understand that today we do not actually have an independent state, but we are an appendage of the Russian Federation.

- And how do people see their role in defending the country's sovereignty?

- It was clearly seen at the meeting: people understand that the only way to build a truly independent state is to get rid of the dictatorship. They understand that Lukashenka is not a "guarantor", but on the contrary - he trades in independence and makes the sovereignty of the country dependent on his personal interests.

People have a clear understanding that independent Belarus is possible only without Lukashenka. And the issue of maintaining independence is directly related to the issue of Lukashenka's resignation. And these two issues should be resolved in the coming years - by peaceful resistance and peaceful protest rallies.

- You said that there had been a lot of people at the meeting who wanted to take part in developing the new Belarus. How do they see the future of the country after Lukashenka?

- For the young people who attended the meeting, the future of Belarus is primarily connected with the national idea and the revival of the "national myth" - in a good sense of the word.

And for them, the national idea is based not only on the centuries-old history of Belarus, but also on the events in recent times - the 90's and early 2000's: on the activities of Hennadz Karpenka, for example, on protest rallies and victories in the struggle for independence, which the opposition has led for the past 25 years. The youth perceive these events in connection with the history of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the memory of the national-liberation uprisings as the foundation for education in the new Belarus.

- What local problems do the residents of the town care about most of all?

- These problems are almost the same in all the towns: low wages of $150-200, high prices, the growth of communal payments, the decree on the "parasites" and its possible development, the poor quality of education and medicine.

Maladzechna is not a large industrial center, so there are some nuances, but still local problems are caused by low wages and high prices - for everyone, plus the lack of opportunity for self-realization - for young people.

- What conclusions can be drawn from the visit?

- People understand that if we are not able to change the situation in the near future, the situation may turn in such a way that there will be no need to fight anymore. And at the same time, they understand that the best time to change power in Belarus through elections and actions of civil disobedience and peaceful protest is now.

If you like this article, you can support the website Charter97.org

MULTI-CURRENCY ACCOUNT FOR ASSISTANCE:

Bank's name: Bank Millennium S.A.
Address: ul. Stanislawa Zaryna, 2A, 02-593, Warszawa
IBAN: PL 97 1160 2202 0000 0002 1671 1123
SWIFT: BIGBPLPW
Name of the account holder: Fundacja “KARTA ‘97”
Purpose/title of payment: Donation for statuary aims

You can contact us by the e-mail charter97@gmail.com