We Already Know Approximate Day Of Strike

Belarusian workers take into account the experience of Solidarity.

The leader of the Belarusian Association of Workers Siarhei Dyleuski has given an interview to one of the most authoritative Polish publications - the newspaper "Rzeczpospolita" (translation - Charter97.org). There he spoke about what the Belarusian workers had learned from the Polish "Solidarity," which method of workers' protest is the safest, as well as the date of the strike in Belarus.

During the 2020 protests, Siarhei Dyleuski headed the strike committee of the Minsk Tractor Plant. However, he was forced to leave the country:

- I left because I had no choice, because I was recognized as an extremist, a criminal case was opened against me. To tell you the truth, I didn't want to leave Belarus. I talked about it with the striking colleagues, they decided I had to leave in order to continue my work.

The leader of the Belarusian Association of Workers believes that it is the negotiations that can help find a way out of the political crisis in the country:

- I have contacts with workers of more than 20 state enterprises, we have our people at the most important enterprises in all the regional cities of the country. Today we already know that employees of many Belarusian factories are ready to stop work completely. We demand to meet 10 conditions. One of the most important is the beginning of negotiations between the authorities and the democratic forces. When I met with Lech Walesa, he told me a very important thing: we will not achieve anything by force, we will not solve our problems. We can only get out of the crisis through a roundtable, exclusively by means of negotiations. The Poles succeeded, and we also want peaceful changes.

How to hold a strike according to the safest possible scenario? Siarhei Dyleuski suggests the formula "Stay at Home":

- We will not organize either occupation strikes or street protests. Workers of Belarusian factories and enterprises will stay at home. They will take sick leave and vacations, go to summer cottages and villages. This will be the safest of all possible scenarios. We also draw a lot on the Polish experience. At the time of "Solidarity," there were benefit funds that were located, for example, in churches. Belarusian workers are also setting up such funds, and the most reliable and trusted people are doing it. Where does the money come from? Belarusian diasporas around the world, including Poland, are helping. We're also going to apply for help to various foundations and the European Union. The workers are getting ready for a big strike, they are already stocking up on food.

Also, in an interview with the publication "Rzeczpospolita," the leader of workers answered the question that many people are concerned about - when the strike begins in Belarus:

- We already know the approximate day, we do not disclose the details. The strike will begin this fall.

According to Siarhei Dyleuski, Belarusian Association of Workers pays special attention to cooperation with its activists:

- The safety of people is most important for us, so we do not act openly inside the country.

In an interview with "Rzeczpospolita," Siarhei Dyleuski said that he believes in the Belarusian people and believes they can regain their freedom:

- It's been more than a year, we've come to an important conclusion - no one will solve the problems of the Belarusians for them. Everything depends on the people who are left in the country: factory workers, doctors, students, firefighters, miners, teachers. Everything is in our hands.