Belarus oppn leader calls for protests
Published: 03:05 PM,May 29,2021 | EDITED : 07:05 PM,May 29,2021
Belarusian opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya
MOSCOW: Belarusian opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya called for the world to stand with political prisoners on the one-year anniversary of her husband's jailing.
From her exile in Lithuania, Tikhanovskaya urged rallies to take place and once again demanded that Roman Protasevich, an opposition journalist and vocal critic of the Belarusian regime, be released.
Protasevich was arrested in Belarus after being taken off a diverted Ryanair flight from Greece to Lithuania nearly a week ago.
The incident triggered international condemnation and put the spotlight once again on the plight of journalists and activists in the authoritarian Eastern European country.
Tikhanovskaya's husband Sergei had wanted to run against long-time leader Alexander Lukashenko in the presidential election held in August, but was arrested at the end of last May. He faces years in prison.
His wife ran in his place.
According to the official results, she lost the election, which was widely regarded as rigged.
The country's pro-democracy movement, however, sees her as the true winner and for weeks stage mass post-election rallies, often resulting in hundreds of people detained. Tikhanovskaya fled to Lithuania for her safety.
The United States and the European Union no longer recognise Lukashenko as president and said they will impose sanctions in the wake of Protasevich's plane arrest.
Protasevich's girlfriend, Sofia Sapega, was also taken into custody after the Ryanair plane was forced to land in Minsk. -dpa
From her exile in Lithuania, Tikhanovskaya urged rallies to take place and once again demanded that Roman Protasevich, an opposition journalist and vocal critic of the Belarusian regime, be released.
Protasevich was arrested in Belarus after being taken off a diverted Ryanair flight from Greece to Lithuania nearly a week ago.
The incident triggered international condemnation and put the spotlight once again on the plight of journalists and activists in the authoritarian Eastern European country.
Tikhanovskaya's husband Sergei had wanted to run against long-time leader Alexander Lukashenko in the presidential election held in August, but was arrested at the end of last May. He faces years in prison.
His wife ran in his place.
According to the official results, she lost the election, which was widely regarded as rigged.
The country's pro-democracy movement, however, sees her as the true winner and for weeks stage mass post-election rallies, often resulting in hundreds of people detained. Tikhanovskaya fled to Lithuania for her safety.
The United States and the European Union no longer recognise Lukashenko as president and said they will impose sanctions in the wake of Protasevich's plane arrest.
Protasevich's girlfriend, Sofia Sapega, was also taken into custody after the Ryanair plane was forced to land in Minsk. -dpa