Zmitser Bandarenka: National Dialogue Needed By Belarus in Same Way as By Tunisia

In order to save oneself, his family and the country, the dictator would have to initiate this process himself.

It was said by a coordinator of European Belarus civil campaign Zmitser Bandarenka, who commented to charter97.org website the decision of the Nobel Committee to award the Peace Prize 2015 to National Dialogue Quartet from Tunisia “For the national dialogue”.

- This year the committees for awarding prizes have already given us joy twice, as previously, frankly speaking, some laureates of the literary and peace prizes raised many questions, – the politician said, – Today we rejoice at Svetlana Alexievich’s success. The decision of the Nobel Prize Committee to give the Peace Prize to the Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet deserves respect as well.

Holding a round table discussion with participation of politicians, the civil society and trade unions in the countries where dictatorships had been ruling for a long time is exactly the key for a progressive peaceful development of these states for many years. We saw an example of that in Poland, when both the authorities and opposition were wise enough to launch negotiations and agree upon holding free elections. We see that Tunisia has become the only Arab country, in which revolution resulted in a progressive advance in the direction of democracy.

In the same way as Tunisia, Belarus needs a national dialogue. It is clear that dictators or authoritarian regimes agree to direct negotiations with opposition either under the influence of street protests, as it was in Tunisia, or when they clearly realize that the economic model, which had been implemented by them, has completely run its course and brought discredit upon itself, like in the Communist Poland.

Now there is a hope that the European Union and the US would have wisdom not to support the worn-out dictator Lukashenka, who had discredited himself, but to use economic and credit leverage in order to make him hand over power peacefully, and to lay foundations of changes in Belarus. That is why it is extremely important for the Belarusian nation today to boycott this farce, which Lukashenka is trying to organize. It is important to show that it is rejected by the Belarusian nation.

To my mind, opposition is ready for a beginning of a national dialogue. It is clear that Lukashenka and his inner circle, who had tarnished themselves by repressions against opposition, could not be participants of this dialogue, but other representatives of power could be ones. In order to save himself, his family and his country, the dictator would have to initiate this process himself, and I believe that such a development of situation in Belarus remains still possible.

And today I express my admiration at the courage and sensible approach of the Tunisian laureates of the Nobel Peace Prize.