Expert: Belarusians not ready yet for street protests
Will Europe-style protests and strikes take place in Belarus? The European Radio for Belarus talks with sociologist and former labor minister Alexander Sasnou. People in Europe have recently taken to streets and paralyzed the life of Western democracies. Last Thursday, France came to a halt when a nation-wide strike took place across the country. The rallies, organized by trade unions, protested against Nicolas Sarkozy’s policy of handling the economic crisis and demanded a wage increase. A similar situation could be observed in Germany. In the neighboring Lithuania and Latvia, peaceful rallies turned into a public unrest and violent clashes with the police.
In which conditions are Belarusians ready to take to streets in order to express their social position? Will Europe-style protests and strikes be repeated in Belarus? The European Radio for Belarus asked Alexander Sasnou, a sociologist and Belarus’ former labor minister, to comment on these questions.
“I think such a situation is currently unreal, because the population is frightened”, Sasnou said. He also explained that in order to make people take $to streets to protest, the standards of living have to deteriorate significantly.
“The standard of living has dropped insignificantly. From the viewpoint of an ordinary Belarusian, nothing has really changed much”.
The second reason is that trade unions in Belarus are not developed. The Federation of Trade Unions of Belarus is totally controlled by the authorities and is not ready to oppose to the government’s official policy.
“There are no trade unions in Belarus that could lead people for such protests. The Federation of Trade Union of Belarus, headed by Kozik, is not a union. It is a department of the presidential administration which controls workers. So, this union will do anything to prevent people from taking out to streets”, Sasnou says.
Photo: Charter97.org
In which conditions are Belarusians ready to take to streets in order to express their social position? Will Europe-style protests and strikes be repeated in Belarus? The European Radio for Belarus asked Alexander Sasnou, a sociologist and Belarus’ former labor minister, to comment on these questions.
“I think such a situation is currently unreal, because the population is frightened”, Sasnou said. He also explained that in order to make people take $to streets to protest, the standards of living have to deteriorate significantly.
“The standard of living has dropped insignificantly. From the viewpoint of an ordinary Belarusian, nothing has really changed much”.
The second reason is that trade unions in Belarus are not developed. The Federation of Trade Unions of Belarus is totally controlled by the authorities and is not ready to oppose to the government’s official policy.
“There are no trade unions in Belarus that could lead people for such protests. The Federation of Trade Union of Belarus, headed by Kozik, is not a union. It is a department of the presidential administration which controls workers. So, this union will do anything to prevent people from taking out to streets”, Sasnou says.
Photo: Charter97.org
