The leader of the Belarusian opposition, Svetlana Tikhanovskaia, described this Tuesday as a “farce” and “revenge” of President Alexander Lukashenko his trial, which begins this Tuesday in Belarus, in his absence.
“These trials are not trials. It’s a show, it’s a farce, it has nothing to do with justice,” denounced the opposition member exiled in Lithuania, but who was visiting Davos, Switzerland, where she gave an interview to Agence France Presse (AFP).
For Svetlana Tikhanovskaia, these trials against opponents of the regime are “a personal vendetta” for Lukashenko and his associates.
Facing “a dozen charges” including high treason and conspiracy to seize power, the politician said she contacted her public defender, but he never responded.
“I don’t even know what my so-called lawyer will do tomorrow in that court, how he will defend me. I do not know how long this trial will last, how many days, but I am sure that they will sentence me to many, many years in prison, ”he stressed.
The Belarusian opponent also pointed out that the joint Air Force exercises organized today between Russia and Belarus are a ‘bluff’ by Lukashenko, who allowed Russia to use his territory to organize attacks against Ukraine.
“It’s a show for the people of Belarus, to threaten them, to tell them: look at the Russian army, so be calm, don’t oppose anything,” he stressed.
The main objective, according to Tikhanovskaia, is also “to divert the attention of Ukrainian soldiers from the hot spots in the east [da Ucrânia] towards the border of Belarus” in the north.
Lukashenko, in power since 1994, renewed the presidential mandate in the elections of August 9, 2020, the results of which were not recognized by the internal opposition, nor by Western countries, after various accusations of electoral fraud.
Tikhanovskaya claimed victory over Lukashenko in that presidential election and was forced to flee to neighboring Lithuania, amid a crackdown on mass protest demonstrations following the release of the official results.
Svetlana Tikhanovskaya highlighted today that she is the first person from her country to participate in the Davos World Economic Forum since 1992, two years before Lukashenko took power.
“It is a great honor for us because for more than 30 years Belarus was like a black hole on the map of Europe: we were considered an appendage of Russia,” he said.
Following the disputed 2020 presidential election, the Belarusian regime cracked down on historic opposition protests with mass arrests, forced exiles, and arrests of activists and journalists.
According to the Belarusian center for human rights Viasna, this country currently has more than 1,400 political prisoners.
Svetlana Tikhanovskaya’s husband, Sergei Tikhanovski, was arrested ahead of the 2020 presidential election, prompting his wife to run for office. The politician was sentenced in December 2021 to 18 years in prison.
Also today began the closed-door trial of journalist Andrzej Poczobut, a figure of the Polish minority in Belarus, who faces a 12-year prison sentence.
Earlier this month, Belarus started trying it out with Ales Bialiatski, a Belarusian democracy activist and co-winner of the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize, founder of the Viasna Center. Bialiatski, who is in prison, risks up to 12 years in prison with his collaborators.
Source: TSF
