Tens of thousands of Lithuanians linked arms on Sunday in solidarity with the people of neighbouring Belarus who have been holding mass protests against authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko since a disputed presidential election two weeks ago. The participants formed a human chain stretching 30 kilometres (19 miles) from the Baltic EU state’s capital Vilnius to the border with Belarus, with many holding the Belarus opposition’s red-and-white flag as well as the Lithuanian national tricolour. Solidarity rallies were also held in other European countries, inspired by the historic Baltic Way demonstration on August 23, 1989 when more than one million Lithuanians, Latvians and Estonians linked hands to reject Soviet rule.
Organisers estimated that up to 50,000 people attended the rally in Lithuania, with most demonstrators dressed in white and wearing face masks to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. hot-air balloon lifted a huge Belarusian flag above Cathedral Square in Vilnius. Planes also flew over, with flowers tossed down into the crowd. Lithuania’s influential Catholic church also weighed in, offering Sunday prayers for the Belarusian “march to freedom”.
In Latvia, hundreds of campaigners marched along the border with Belarus and then formed a human chain in the village of Piedruja as Belarusian border guards looked on from the other side of the Daugava river. Human chains were also scheduled to take place in the Estonian capital Tallinn and along the iconic Charles Bridge in Prague. The recreation reflects Lithuanian efforts to consolidate international support for protests in its eastern neighbour, notably after Vilnius gave shelter to Belarusian opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya.The 37-year-old, who challenged Lukashenko at the disputed August 9 presidential election, thanked Lithuania in her video address.
Source: DJ
Finnish site 
Global site