Exiled Belarus opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya has urged Belarusians to keep protesting against President Alexander Lukashenko and force the government into negotiations which she hoped could lead to a new election in the autumn.
She added that the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and the United Nations were ready to mediate in any negotiations with the government.
Ms Tsikhanouskaya also launched an online poll, urging people to vote in favour of demanding such talks, which she said would give her and the opposition a mandate. Talks could begin in May, she said. By 15.15 GMT more than 300,000 people had signed the petition.
"Your votes will help us to get decisive steps from the international structures — the OSCE and the UN. They are ready to organise a platform and act as mediators as well as to force the regime to negotiate," she said.
"Most importantly, our votes will regain our sense of unity, majority and power. Before negotiations begin, we will strengthen our negotiating position: through protests and campaigns of civil disobedience."
Take sides
There was no immediate comment from the United Nations, or from the Minsk government, as President Lukashenko called on Thursday for tougher punishments against protesters who have challenged his legitimacy.
The OSCE said it was ready to "encourage constructive dialogue", but would not take sides in the conflict.
"The OSCE would not impose itself, take sides, nor interfere in the internal affairs of Belarus", an OSCE spokesperson said in a statement to Reuters.
"The situation must be resolved in Minsk and among the people of Belarus, in full respect for their sovereignty, their independence and their human rights".
The Tsikhanouskaya statement appeared to be an attempt to rekindle the anger that brought tens of thousands onto the streets after August's presidential election, which Lukashenko said he had won but Ms Tsikhanouskaya's supporters say was stolen from her.
Dwindling protests
The protests dwindled over the winter and Lukashenko, who refused to step down despite new Western sanctions, has so far weathered what has been the biggest challenge to him in his 27 years in power, helped by Moscow, which sees Belarus as a buffer against the European Union and NATO.
Thousands of protesters have been rounded up and nearly all opposition figures have been driven into exile or jailed. Lukashenko on Thursday told his government to toughen the punishments for protesters.
"Our special services say that we will not be allowed to live in peace. This means that you need to be ready for any manifestations of destructive activity: from calls for illegal strikes to manipulation of minds through the internet," he said, in remarks reported by the state news agency, Belta.
Lukashenko's spokeswoman had no immediate comment on Ms Tsikhanouskaya's statement.
Over the past month, three journalists who covered the protests have been sentenced to between six months and two years in prison, and a protester has been jailed for 10 years, all on charges that the opposition says were trumped up.
United Nations human rights chief Michelle Bachelet said on February 25th that there was a "human rights crisis of unprecedented dimension" in Belarus.
She said 246 people had been sentenced to jail on politically-motivated charges as of February 9th.
