Coming soon, the mauve or chartreuse or sea-foam green revolution, ready-made, teevee-friendly, people-power, dial-up “democracy.” I’m certain Sorros and the various institutes are hard at work trying to make this happen. Expect the Minsk Uprising to warm the hearts and distract from the dreary news of the Mess-in-Potamia. For a couple of news cycles, maybe.
11:09 am on August 19, 2005PRAGUE (AP)–Former Czech president Vaclav Havel and several other public figure called on the European Union, the U.S. and other democratic countries Friday to adopt a common strategy to support pro-democracy forces in Belarus.
In a statement entitled The Last Totalitarian Country in Europe, Havel and others condemned the rule of President Alexander Lukashenko and his authoritarian government who “abuse…basic human and citizens’ rights on daily basis.”“We are…convinced that it is necessary to make use of every opportunity…to take a stand against this post-Soviet autocrat and his efforts to totally suppress the remains of independent initiatives in Belarus,” said the statement released in the Czech Republic by an informal group called Shared Concern Initiative.
The group was formed recently by Havel and the Dalai Lama “to address important challenges facing global society.”
Billionaire George Soros, former German president Richard von Weizsaeker, former president of Ireland Mary Robinson and Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa are also among those who signed its latest initiative. [Ahh, all the usual suspects of international do-goodery and uplift…]
Lukashenko, who has ruled since 1994, has quashed dissent, closed independent media and suppressed opposition parties.
The group said the E.U. should do more to help build “Belarus based on democratic values” and also “fully open its exchange and educational programs for democratically oriented young people of Belarus.”
In cooperation with Ukraine, the E.U. should respond quickly to a recent proposal to establish independent radio and television stations in Belarus’ neighboring countries, the statement also said.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
