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Report: Leading Belarus Opposition Figure Abducted

VOA News

   Maria Kolesnikova, a leading member of Belarus' opposition, was
   reportedly seized by unidentified men in Minsk on Monday as
   demonstrations against President Alexander Lukashenko entered their
   fifth straight week.

   A witness identified as Anastasia told Belarusian website Tut.by Monday
   that she saw Kolesnikova being forced by men in civilian clothing into
   a minibus and driven away.

   Kolesnikova is the last of three women left inside Belarus who came
   together in the opposition coordination council to try and defeat
   Lukashenko in the August 9th poll. He was declared winner in the
   election but opposition parties, along with the United States and the
   European Union, say the poll was heavily rigged.

   Kolesnikova's ally Olga Kovalkova went to Poland Saturday, saying
   authorities forced her out of the country, while Belarus' main
   opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya has been in Lithuania with
   her children since the election for what she says is her own safety.

   In an interview with VOA, Tsikhanouskaya said she is working to
   organize new elections despite Lukashenko's refusal to do so.

   "Our plan is absolutely clear. It's organization of new elections, fair
   and transparent," she said.

   Protests over the weekend once again drew tens of thousands of people,
   shouting "go away" and "you're a rat," members of the crowd waved red
   and white opposition flags.

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