Opposition Candidate Tikhanovskaya Says Belarus 'waking Up'

Minsk, Aug 7 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 7th Aug, 2020 ) :The surprise opposition candidate mounting the most serious challenge in years to Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said Friday that her country was waking up, but warned the strongman planned to rig the vote.

"People are waking up, rediscovering their self-respect," 37-year-old Svetlana Tikhanovskaya told AFP in an interview in central Minsk.

Tikhanovskaya decided to run after her 41-year-old blogger husband, Sergei Tikhanovsky, ended up in jail and could not submit his own presidential bid in time.

She said she expected Lukashenko, in power since 1994, to rig Sunday's election.

"We won't be able to prevent falsifications. We've seen over the past couple of days how brazenly this election is being falsified.

There is no hope that they will count honestly. We have to be realistic." Early voting began in the ex-Soviet country of 9.5 million people on Tuesday, with official turnout over the past three days already at more than 22 percent.

She said the opposition would conduct an alternative count and would know if the election had been rigged, but said she would not urge her supporters to take to the streets.

"At this stage each one has to decide for himself," she said, warning that Lukashenko would only encourage protests by quashing dissent.

"They are doing everything for the peaceful protests to become bloody ones. And I don't want this."