After yet another Sunday of protests where thousands of Belarusian citizens took to the streets with police trying to disperse them (hundreds of arbitrary arrests were reported on social media), the strike called by opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya
has started today. This comes after yesterday’s expiration of the ultimatum to meet the three requests put forward by Tsikhanouskaya, namely “Lukashenko’s resignation; stopping violence; and releasing political prisoners”.
But since the demands were not met, the call for a national strike has been issued today. Seniors and students, according to reports by Franak Viačorka, an advisor to Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, “employees of over 40 state enterprises, 10 universities and hundreds of private organizations joined the protest”. “Miners, doctors, teachers, students, artists, transport workers” all went on strike. “Eyes glued to the news from Belarus”, tweeted the opposition leader, who is currently in Denmark. “Belarusians are determined to end the dictatorship. Factories, companies big and small, students are all on the National Strike. People support them with solidarity chains all over Minsk and Belarus”.