On Thursday, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya met with Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio, Deputy Foreign Minister Benedetto Della Vedova, Minister of Labour and Social Policies Andrea Orlando, and held working meetings with Italian Parliament’s group leaders – parties Partito Democratico, Forza Italia, Viva Italia, Movimento 5 Stelle. Ms. Tsikhanouskaya also spoke at the hearing on Belarus at the Committee of Foreign Affairs of the Italian Parliament.
The main topic of the discussion was how Italy could help Belarusians. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya called on Italy to be more decisive in its actions, to support EU-level sanctions against the Lukashenka regime – a new package will be considered in May.
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya told about the situation with political prisoners, the case of Tsikhanouski-Losik-Statkevich, the facts of torture in prisons. Ms. Tsikhanouskaya called on politicians to take patronage over political prisoners in Belarus and write letters to them and publicly support them.
The topic of negotiations on Belarus' recovery from crisis and Italy’s role in this was also discussed – on the level of the OSCE PA conferences, round tables with the participation of experts from EU countries and others. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya: “It is very important that Italy understands the Belarusian people and can facilitate a way out of the crisis through negotiations. Belarus and Italy have much in common, and our countries have a great future”.
During the meetings, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya noted the importance of the workers' movement in Belarus and the need to organize a strike and noted that the Belarusian word “strike” comes from the Italian “basta”. Now Belarusian workers are fighting for their rights, despite intimidation, the risk of being detained and fired: “Our fight is a revolution of contrasts. It is a choice between the past and the future. It is a choice for openness and against the isolation that Lukashenka creates. This is a protest for justice and against impunity. And this is a fight for negotiation as a peaceful resolution of the crisis».
While Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya is in Rome, Belarus's topic is all-around pages of local and international newspapers, radio, and TV channels. There is evident sympathy from journalists, civil society, human rights defenders, and politicians.
