Morawiecki calls for Europe to address Belarussian election unrest

by   CIJ News iDesk II
2020-08-11   09:18
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Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has asked Charles Michel, president of the European Council, and Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, to convene an extraordinary European Council meeting to address the political unrest in Belarus, according to premier.gov.pl. Following the presidential election in Belarus on Sunday, riot police used force against thousands who took to the streets in cities across the country to protest the results. State media is reporting that incumbent president Alexander Lukashenko won 80 percent of the vote, with challenger, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, receiving 9.9 percent. But there has been wide-spread speculation that the vote was rigged. Lukashenko has been in power since 1994. Polish PM Morawiecki has said that Poland needs to support Belarusians in their push for government change.