Riga, August 23, LETA. About 400 people, as well as several candidates for the position of mayor of Riga, gathered in the chain of people established in Riga today to support Belarus, the agency LETA observed.
The event was also attended by President Egils Levits, who at the beginning of the chain stood at the Freedom Monument, but then went to the end of the chain at the Latvian People’s Front Museum.
Levits noted in the video published after the event that Latvia has an obligation to support the demands of the Belarusian people for an independent, free and democratic Belarus. He also pointed out that he had participated in the Baltic Way 31 years ago and by that time everyone had understood the importance of support outside Latvia. “Our movement won at that time and we hope that the democratic movement in Belarus will achieve its goals,” Levits said.
People of different ages participate in the human chain, as well as several politicians who represent “For Development / For!” and “Progressive” (AP / PRO), as well as “Honor to Serve Riga”. Namely, the agency LETA observed Oleg Burova (GKR), Baiba Rozentāls (GKR), Mārtiņš Staķi (AP / PRO), Juri Pūci (AP), Ivars Ijabu (AP), as well as Sandra Kalniete (JV).
The members of the support chain hold the white-red-white flag of Belarus, as well as the flags of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. At the end of the chain, people have a large Belarusian flag in their hands at the Latvian People’s Front Museum, which stretches along the entire Old Town Street.
It has already been reported that events in support of Belarus will take place in Latvia and elsewhere in the world today, Kristīne Zonberga, Director of the Latvian Civic Alliance, informed LETA.
The “Baltic Way” campaign took place on August 23, 1989, when more than two million Latvians, Lithuanians and Estonians joined hands in a 600-kilometer-long chain through the Baltic States, affirming unity in the struggle for freedom.
Protests against the falsification of the August 9 presidential election and authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko, who have often escalated into protests in clashes with security forces, have already been reported in Belarus. Thousands have been detained and several hundred injured in protests. Workers in many state-owned companies have gone on strike.
According to official results, Lukashenko, who has been in power since 1994, won 80.1% of the vote, while opposition candidate Svetlana Tikhanovska won 10.1%, but the opposition believes the election results were rigged and that Tikhanovska won the election convincingly. called for new elections. German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced on Wednesday after the European Union summit that the European Union countries do not recognize the election results.
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