Belarus: in the face of pressure, the unions' fight increasingly difficult
A protester in Minsk, October 4, 2020. (Illustrative image) REUTERS / Stringer
Text by: RFI Follow
2 min
It has been three months since the protest continues against the re-election of President Lukashenko.
At the call of Svetlana Tikhanovskaia, the main opponent, a general strike was called on October 26.
But the protest movement, in the face of pressure, did not lead to a paralysis of the economy, largely controlled by the state.
The struggle of the Belarusian unions is more and more difficult.
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Arrests, unfair dismissals, or fines… It is the difficult daily life of the unions which support the strike.
Alexandre Yarochouk, the leader of the democratic unions, did not want to take the risk.
“
Our union did not call for a strike in October or August, because we had to think of the workers.
More than 100 people in our union have been made redundant since October 26th.
I also have information according to which there would be legal proceedings against those who nevertheless went on strike.
So it is our responsibility to protect our employees.
"
In Belarus, it is illegal for a union to call a general strike for political reasons.
The risk ?
Up to two years in prison for the organizers.
Only strikes for "socio-economic" reasons are tolerated but in practice they are impossible to declare.
Economy paralyzed
?
But that did not prevent strike committees in many factories and state enterprises.
Alexandre Boukhvostov, president of the metalworkers' union, supports the strike and believes that soon the economy will be paralyzed.
“
The fact that factory workers organized themselves independently angered the government.
He began to lay off important employees and specialists.
Soon, businesses will stop operating because there will be no one left to fire!
"
For his part, President Lukashenko, backed by Moscow, has shown no intention of giving in for the moment.
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Also to listen: Belarus: "The balance of power shows that the strikers are capable of mobilizing"
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