Andrei Sannikov: Only European direction can save Belarus :: Charter'97 :: News

The democratic forces applied to the Minsk city executive committee for holding the European March. Its major target is manifestation of the Belarusian society’s desire to follow the civilized, European mode of the country’s development.

Among the action applicants are the country’s well-known policymakers: leaders of the BNF Party Vintsuk Vyachorka and Viktar Vashkevich, chairman of the United Civil Party Anatol Lyabedzka, leader of the “For Freedom!” movement Alyaksandr Milinkevich, youth activists Yauhen Afnahel and Zmitser Fedaruk. The action’s organizing committee has been supported by practically all democratic parties and public associations of Belarus, Deutsche welle reports.

This campaign is to become the message sent by the democratic forces to the Belarusian authorities that the opposition is open to the talks on implementation of the democratic reforms taking into account the authorities’ interests. According to the international coordinator of the Charter’97, former deputy foreign minister Adrei Sannikov, the European choice is inevitable for the country:

“The events taking place in Belarus and outside make everybody realize that changing of the power in Belarus is inevitable. We are not indifferent to how it is to happen: under the Kremlin’s pressure or by looking for a compromise, through the dialogue inside the country. To our mind, only the European direction can save the country and solve the problem of energy, economic and political security of the independent Belarus”.

Chairman of the organizing committee of the March Viktar Vashkevich reports that the democratic forces do not wish any confrontation and such well-known political figures as Mikhail Marynich, Yuri Khadika, Adrei Sannikov, etc. are to directly appeal to the top authorities.

“The decision has been made on establishment of the group for maintaining the dialogue with the authorities on holding the European March. All the time before the action the group members are to keep visiting the Minsk city executive committee, the council of ministers , the president’s administration for persuading the authorities that it is beneficial for them to let the March run peacefully”.

The European March is due 14 October at 2 p.m. in Oktyabrskaya Square in Minsk. The March has the following route: along the side-walks of Nezavisimosty Avenue from Oktyabrskaya Square to the site in front of the National Library of the Republic of Belarus where the meeting is to be held.