Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, the main opposition candidate in the August 9 presidential election in Belarus, said she will return from Lithuania once she “feels safe”.
On Friday, Tykhanovskaya delivered her first press conference since her arrival in Vilnius on August 11. Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevičius previously said she was moved from a “direct threat”.
“I love my country very much and I really want to return,” she said. “I will definitely return as soon as I feel safe.”
Tikhanovskaya refused to answer questions about the nature of threats she received and the circumstances surrounding her arrival in Lithuania. "I think everyone in our country is scared, but it is our mission to overcome our fears and move forward," she said.
During the conference, she said Belarus has awakened and people no longer want to live in fear.
"Our common goal is simple. We no longer want to live in fear and to live a lie. We want what every person in the world has – the right [to] live, not to be beaten on the streets, the right not to go to jail, and the right to democratic and transparent elections," she told reporters.
Read more: Tikhanovskaya seeks talks with government, not Lukashenko – spokeswoman
The candidate demanded transparent and fair elections in Belarus.
"I do hope and believe that the leadership will hear their people. Because we have always been told that the president loves his country and his people, and what he sees now makes it clear to him that people want change," she said.
Tikhanovskaya said she had entered the presidential race to replace her husband and did not comment on whether she would run in a new presidential election.
"I do hope that good sense will prevail and the people will be heard and that dialogue will begin and there will be a new, transparent election."
Tikhanovskaya underlined that foreign countries – neither Russia nor others – should not interfere in the affairs of her country.
"I want to thank all the countries that support Belarusians in their aspiration to defend their rights, but I want to reiterate my call on all countries to respect the sovereignty of our nation," she said when asked by reporters about sanctions against the Minsk regime.
Tikhanovskaya also urged an end to violence in Belarus and the release of political prisoners.
While in Vilnius, Tikhanovskaya urged leaders of European countries not to accept the results of the presidential election in Belarus and vowed that the Coordination Council she helped initiate would soon call a new election.
The August 9 presidential election saw Alexander Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus for 26 years, declare victory. The opposition says the vote was rigged.
Read more: Lithuanian PM meets with Belarus' opposition candidate Tikhanovskaya
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