Vasily Beresnev, REP: No matter how hard the authorities try to destroy the whole creation, it won’t work – history develops according to its own laws

On September 29, the Presidium of the Belarusian Independent Trade Union of workers of radio and electronic industry (REP) will discuss the strategy of activities in the conditions of mass repressions.

Traditionally, the agenda of the Presidium includes working issues: admission to and expulsion from trade unions, discussion of financial and economic activities over the past period.

However, the central issue of the meeting is the strategy of work in the difficult conditions of the social and political life of the country:

– The trade union is going through a tough time: we have detected the cases of withdrawal from the trade union under pressure from law enforcement agencies and bodies of power. Nevertheless, we have retained our positions and now we need to discuss how to strengthen the role of the trade union in the social and political life of the country. In the context of the liquidation of civil society organizations, trade unions are still active and show solidarity with the persecuted organizations. Our voice is still heard, albeit not so harshly: the number of mass media is decreasing; we have less and less space available for expressing an independent opinion. However, we hope for improvement: no matter how hard the authorities try to destroy the whole creation, it won’t work – history develops according to its own laws”, emphasized Vasily Beresnev, Acting Chairman of the REP Trade Union.