Mikalai Statkevich: Country was in fact seized on 19 December 2010

• 24.08.2015, 17:13

Under article 357 of the Criminal Code, the events in the country can be called the unconstitutional holding of power.

Former political prisoner and presidential candidate Mikalai Statkevich, who was released after five years in prison, said it at an online conference organised by BelaPAN news agency. Below is the transcript of his answer:

“What happened on December 19, 2010? The man and his henchmen seized power in the country. If we use the terms of the Criminal Code – it is article 357. This man illegally extended his constitutional powers. We can say that the country was seized. Tens of thousands of people (the number of which was reduced year by year in the media, including non-state ones) took to streets to protest against it. An estimated number of 80,000 demonstrators seem to be most probable, because the crowd occupied the entire space between two squares – Kastrychnitskaya (October) and Independence.

Of course, these people hold the power illegally, in my view. They ordered armed law-enforces to attack demonstrators, who were struggling for freedom, paid a price for freedom and suffered for freedom. I am thankful to them, because they did what they cannot be ashamed of. They should be proud of their acts. I regret I failed to save these people from what followed these events, but any freedom has its price. We paid our price on December 19, some continue to pay it now. I mean those who had to leave Belarus and those who lost their jobs.

But one cannot keep the freedom that was gifted. People struggled for it and will continue to struggle. The aspiration for freedom is a feature of a certain percentage of people, which will never disappear,” Mikalai Statkevich said.