Nyaklyayeu calls upon all potential candidates to withdraw from elections

Former leader of the Tell the Truth campaign Uladzimir Nyaklyayeu has called on all potential candidates to withdraw from the presidential election in favor of political prisoner Mikalai Statkevich. In the commentary, the politician and writer said that he was "not a guru for all to listen," but at the same time he "considers it necessary to not participate in this election campaign."

"No one, no force is now able to collect the 100,000 signatures. This is what any experienced person from the opposition will tell you," said Mr Nyaklyayeu.

We publish his public appeal called "Before it is too late":

"The Central Committee of the Belarusian Social Democratic Party Hramada, which is a member of the coalition called the People's Referendum did not pass a decision to support in the presidential election a potential presidential candidate of the coalition.

What follows from this?

First of all, it means that what none of the participants in the campaign, representing the Belarusian democratic opposition is likely to collect 100,000 signatures required for the registration of presidential candidates. They were not there in the first place, but now it has become obvious to anyone who has at least some idea of ​​the state of the opposition.

What to do in this situation?

Prior to the registration of initiative groups, all prospective candidates should withdraw from the election, and all opposition structures should support the nomination of a single candidate from the democratic opposition, the political prisoner Mikalai Statkevich. This is the only right decision both in terms of policy and in terms of morality. In general, this solution is the rescue for the opposition.

What would happen if the opposition fails to do so?

If the current potential candidates fail to withdraw from the elections, if the opposition does not put forward a single candidate, it will inevitably be on the path of fraud, deliberately deceive their voters. Thus, it will stand on the path of the authorities. The opposition has already had such "experience" in 2010, which led to its actual defeat. Now it will simply throw in a towel.

I'm against it. My withdrawal from the opposition in no way means that I want it gone. I do not want this, if only because it is unfair to opposition activists, to people that are not related to any backroom games and who sincerely sacrifice themselves to the struggle for democratic and free future. Leaders of opposition organizations simply do not have the right to draw these people in the falsification, in a deceipt. Therefore, the decision to change the scenario of the oppposition participation in the presidential election should be made without delay, immediately after the official announcement of the date of the event.
It is too late for anything else."