BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

15/08/2007

Belarus' Opposition Agrees to Unite

Reuters

MINSK -- Leaders of Belarus' disparate opposition vowed Tuesday to cast aside their differences and work together to stage a major rally in the fall against Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko.

The opposition, a mix of liberals and nationalists, achieved rare unity for last year's poll by backing liberal academic Alexander Milinkevich only to split afterward.

But leaders Tuesday vowed to bring together 10,000 supporters in an Oct. 14 "European march" before next year's parliamentary election.

"Talk of a split in our ranks is greatly exaggerated," Milinkevich said after opposition parties agreed to the march. "We will find common ground. There is much we can do together. Our joint aim is to live in a democracy."

Anatoly Lebedko, another opposition leader, said there could be no token gestures. "There is no point in joining hands for a photograph. We have to focus on people working together."

Source:

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2007/08/15/013.html

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