The #LightForBelarus action was initiated by Poland’s Culture Ministry, the country’s National Centre for Culture and the Adam Mickiewicz Institute to support Belarusians in their fight for freedom.
Polish Deputy Culture Minister Jarosław Sellin said: „The action is important for the world not to forget about Belarus. We should speak up to protect the rights of its people.”
„We should all think about how to force Belarusian authorities to stop the violence, and start talking to the representatives of Belarusian opposition, to make the country democratic,” he added.
Cultural Institutions in Lithuania, Ukraine and Georgia have also joined the action to express their solidarity with Belarusian protesters.
On Friday, the prime ministers of Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Hungary, which together form a regional cooperation platform called the Visegrad Group have urged the Belarusian authorities to release all political prisoners.
Strongman leader Alexander Lukashenko has cracked down on protests in Belarus demanding his resignation following an August 9 presidential election which the opposition says was rigged.
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Friday that the Visegrad Group wants to propose visa-free travel for Belarusian citizens.
At an upcoming EU summit, the Visegrad Group aims to put forward a plan to help the Belarus economy, state broadcaster Polish Radio’s IAR news agency reported.
Poland’s Morawiecki promised last month that his country would seek to support Belarus by opening its borders and labour market while providing financial support to civil society after a violent crackdown on post-election protests in its eastern neighbour.
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Source: IAR