Belarus opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya has pledged to"stand till the end" in protests over disputed elections and following violence.
She told the BBC that if the demonstration movement stepped back now, they'd be"slaves".
Protests and strikes continue, but President Alexander Lukashenko shows no sign of backing down almost two weeks after the election was held.
He has vowed to crush the unrest in the forthcoming days.
Ms Tikhanovskaya stood since the primary opposition candidate, drawing large audiences during the election campaign.
But she left for neighbouring Lithuania per day after the 9 August election, saying she feared for her family's security, after Mr Lukashenko was formally declared the winner by a landslide. She has said she will go back when she feels secure.
What's happening in Belarus?
'Should you croak we do not care': Brutality at Belarus
'There's no way back. The people will not forgive this'
The results prompted widespread unrest and a brutal police crackdown, which just led to more protests.
Last weekend an estimated 200,000 anti-Lukashenko protesters stuffed central Minsk, and mass strikes are continuing.
Belarus - the basic facts
Where's Belarus? It's Russia - its former imperial master - into the east and Ukraine to the south east west. To the west and north lie EU and Nato members Latvia, Lithuania and Poland.
Why does this matter? Like Ukraine, this state of 9.5 million is captured in rivalry between the West and Russia. He has been in power for 26 years, keeping a lot of the economy in state hands, and utilizing censorship and police crackdowns against competitors.
What's going on there? Now there is a massive resistance movement, demanding new, democratic leadership and financial reform. They say Mr Lukashenko rigged the 9 August election - officially he won by a landslide. His fans say his strength has kept the country stable.
'If not today, we will be slaves'
Ms Tikhanovskaya told the BBC Belarusians had voted for her, not as a future president but as a"sign of modifications".
"They were crying for their future, due to their wish to live in a free country, against violence, for their faith," she said, in her only meeting with a Western media outlet.
Despite the fact that the protests had stalled, they had to proceed, she added.
"We have no right to step back today - if not today, we'll be slaves and our people understand this and I'm convinced we will stand until the end."
Earlier in a video address, Ms Tikhanovskaya urged supporters to step up strikes despite"intimidation" from the police.
There have been reports of stress placed on strikers since Mr Lukashenko tries to reassert control.
The president insisted that the tragedy will soon be finished.
"That is my difficulty, which I must solve, and we are resolving it," he said in a trip to a country food mill. "And believe me, at the coming days it will be solved."
Meanwhile allies of Ms Tikhanovskaya on the new opposition Co-ordination Council have been summoned into the Belarus Investigative Committee (SK), as they are now accused of an illegal power grab.
A lawyer for the ministry, Maxim Znak, and Sergei Dylevsky, organiser of strikes at the Minsk Tractor Factory, were questioned on Friday.
The council, which also includes notable Belarusian cultural figures, was launched to organise a peaceful transition and then pave the way for a re-run of this election. President Lukashenko has called a number of those protesters"Nazis".
Maxim Znak told the BBC he was worried he could be arrested on Friday.
But reports say the number of strikers has dropped because of the official pressure on them. For instance, individuals who walked from state TV were advised that they wouldn't get their jobs back.
Police intervened at a demonstration outside the Minsk Tractor Factory, arresting protesters.
EU leaders as well as the US government see Mr Lukashenko's victory as fraudulent and rear the opposition's requirement for an election re-run.
Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the Belarus crisis on Friday together with his security chiefs.
A Kremlin statement afterwards said"they worried that any external interference in the republic's events is unacceptable and that the only means to repay all of Belarus's internal issues is through dialogue between the country's direction and its citizens". Meanwhile, the EU has declared sanctions against Mr Lukashenko.
She told the BBC that if the demonstration movement stepped back now, they'd be"slaves".
Protests and strikes continue, but President Alexander Lukashenko shows no sign of backing down almost two weeks after the election was held.
He has vowed to crush the unrest in the forthcoming days.
Ms Tikhanovskaya stood since the primary opposition candidate, drawing large audiences during the election campaign.
But she left for neighbouring Lithuania per day after the 9 August election, saying she feared for her family's security, after Mr Lukashenko was formally declared the winner by a landslide. She has said she will go back when she feels secure.
What's happening in Belarus?
'Should you croak we do not care': Brutality at Belarus
'There's no way back. The people will not forgive this'
The results prompted widespread unrest and a brutal police crackdown, which just led to more protests.
Last weekend an estimated 200,000 anti-Lukashenko protesters stuffed central Minsk, and mass strikes are continuing.
Belarus - the basic facts
Where's Belarus? It's Russia - its former imperial master - into the east and Ukraine to the south east west. To the west and north lie EU and Nato members Latvia, Lithuania and Poland.
Why does this matter? Like Ukraine, this state of 9.5 million is captured in rivalry between the West and Russia. He has been in power for 26 years, keeping a lot of the economy in state hands, and utilizing censorship and police crackdowns against competitors.
What's going on there? Now there is a massive resistance movement, demanding new, democratic leadership and financial reform. They say Mr Lukashenko rigged the 9 August election - officially he won by a landslide. His fans say his strength has kept the country stable.
'If not today, we will be slaves'
Ms Tikhanovskaya told the BBC Belarusians had voted for her, not as a future president but as a"sign of modifications".
"They were crying for their future, due to their wish to live in a free country, against violence, for their faith," she said, in her only meeting with a Western media outlet.
Despite the fact that the protests had stalled, they had to proceed, she added.
"We have no right to step back today - if not today, we'll be slaves and our people understand this and I'm convinced we will stand until the end."
Earlier in a video address, Ms Tikhanovskaya urged supporters to step up strikes despite"intimidation" from the police.
There have been reports of stress placed on strikers since Mr Lukashenko tries to reassert control.
The president insisted that the tragedy will soon be finished.
"That is my difficulty, which I must solve, and we are resolving it," he said in a trip to a country food mill. "And believe me, at the coming days it will be solved."
Meanwhile allies of Ms Tikhanovskaya on the new opposition Co-ordination Council have been summoned into the Belarus Investigative Committee (SK), as they are now accused of an illegal power grab.
A lawyer for the ministry, Maxim Znak, and Sergei Dylevsky, organiser of strikes at the Minsk Tractor Factory, were questioned on Friday.
The council, which also includes notable Belarusian cultural figures, was launched to organise a peaceful transition and then pave the way for a re-run of this election. President Lukashenko has called a number of those protesters"Nazis".
Maxim Znak told the BBC he was worried he could be arrested on Friday.
But reports say the number of strikers has dropped because of the official pressure on them. For instance, individuals who walked from state TV were advised that they wouldn't get their jobs back.
Police intervened at a demonstration outside the Minsk Tractor Factory, arresting protesters.
EU leaders as well as the US government see Mr Lukashenko's victory as fraudulent and rear the opposition's requirement for an election re-run.
Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the Belarus crisis on Friday together with his security chiefs.
A Kremlin statement afterwards said"they worried that any external interference in the republic's events is unacceptable and that the only means to repay all of Belarus's internal issues is through dialogue between the country's direction and its citizens". Meanwhile, the EU has declared sanctions against Mr Lukashenko.