Belarus' Tikhanovskaya Calls for Continued Strikes to Demand New Elections

MINSK (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 21st August, 2020) Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, the main Belarusian presidential contender from the opposition, urged the country's workers in a new video address released on Friday to keep demanding a new presidential election through continued strikes and rallies.

"My dear Belarusians, employees of Belaruskali, MTZ, Grodnoazot and other enterprises, you are a symbol of the new free Belarus ... The future of Belarus, and, therefore, the future of our children now depends on your unity and your determination. Therefore, I ask you to continue and expand the strikes," Tikhanovskaya said.

According to the opposition figure, the goals are simple � to "release political prisoners" and hold new elections.

On Thursday, Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko said that all of the country's industrial facilities and state-owned enterprises functioned as normal, notwithstanding what he described as staged protests.

According to the official, the turnout at the protests at such facilities was disproportionately lower than the size of their workforce.

Nationwide protests broke out in Belarus after the August 9 election, in which incumbent President Alexander Lukashenko won his sixth consecutive term with 80.1 percent of the vote. The opposition challenged the outcome, claiming that Tikhanovskaya, who came in second with roughly 10 percent, was the legitimate winner.

In the first days of the rallies, security forces used tear gas, water cannons, stun grenades and rubber bullets against protesters, which caused serious concerns abroad.

According to official estimates, more than 6,700 people were detained in the early days of the unrest. Many of them have since been released. Hundreds of others, including more than 150 law enforcement officers, were injured, and three protesters died.