Belarusians of Arizona to form Human Chain of Solidarity with Belarus on August 16 in Phoenix, AZ

PHOENIX - Aug. 14, 2020 - PRLog -- Belarusians of Arizona will form a "Human Chain of Solidarity" with Belarus on August 16 in Phoenix, Arizona.

Hundreds of thousands of Belarusians in the country and around the world have joined a wave of protests after the results of the Belarusian presidential elections held on August 9 have been announced and deemed as not free and fair by the US and EU.

Incumbent President Aliaksandr Lukashenka, in power since 1994, was announced the winner claiming to have received 80% of votes. However, according to the exit polls, the main presidential challenger Ms Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya received 70-80% of votes in the country. In the US, Belarusian embassies in New York and Washington DC posted official results that match the results of exit polls and confirm 95% of votes in favor of Ms Tsikhanouskaya.

To protest the rigging of the elections, thousands of Belarusians joined for peaceful protests. They were met by the SWAT teams armed with rubber bullets, tear gas, and flash grenades. 7,000 of peaceful people have been beaten up and arrested by the police. There are several confirmed deaths of civilians. The shocking news of police brutality and torture has shaken the world.

Belarusians of Arizona denounce the official election results and implore Belarus' authorities to stop violence against Belarusian people, release all political prisoners, recognize the new President-Elect Ms. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, and arrange for the peaceful transfer of power.

Belarusian people need your help and support to stop the violence of law enforcement agencies and facilitate the peaceful transfer of power to the democratically elected president.

We invite people of all nationalities - Belarusian, American, Polish, Ukrainian, Russian – and anyone else who is not indifferent to the human rights violations happening in Belarus to join us for the peaceful protest. We encourage media to attend the event and support our quest for democracy.

On August 16th, we will gather in front of the Capitol at 6 pm to form a Chain of Solidarity. Also in the program: mini-concert featuring Kunta (Epik Dance, USA), Liana Burtsava (guitar, Belarus), German Wegbrait (guitar, Uruguay).

More information about the event can be found at https://bit.ly/belarusaz. For media inquiries and questions, please contact Liana Burtsava at liana.burtsava (a) gmail.com