Hans-Georg Wieck: No Chances for Belarus' Government in Exile Recognition
However, the idea of a coordination centre abroad is “not completely absurd.”
The establishment of a Belarusian government in exile makes no sense as it would not obtain international recognition, German diplomat Hans-Georg Wieck, the head of the currently closed OSCE Minsk Office, said at a conference in Vilnius on May 25.
At the same time, he added, the creation of a foreign-based office for advancing democratic change in Belarus is not completely absurd.
Most conference participants were critical of a call for establishing a government in exile or a “transitional council,” which was made by retired Armed Forces Colonel Uladzimir Baradach earlier this year.
“One should not take abroad what can be done inside the country,” said political analyst Jury Chavusau. Even a foreign-based office coordinating opposition forces' activity in Belarus would have a negative impact on Aliaksandr Lukashenka's political opponents, the expert warned.
"It would look strange if the opposition were led from abroad, this is what the authorities are already accusing their domestic opponents of. This could further alienate the opposition from the public," he predicted.
“Functioning organizations abroad, such as the Vilnius-based Human Rights House, are always created to perform specific functions that cannot be performed inside the country - for publishing books, holding youth summer camps and conferences, accumulating funds for assisting political prisoners,” Mr. Chavusaw said.
Valier Bulhakau, chief editor of the intellectual magazine Arche, described the call as an “example of short-sighted thinking.” Transitional councils abroad are normally created to pave way to some kind of military intervention, he explained.
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