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It was another action by Belarusian women who took to the streets with flags and flowers against the massive Sunday protests that have taken place since the disputed elections on August 9.
The number of women arrested this Saturday is much higher than last week. The woman was detained by members of the anti-riot militia in black uniforms, masked officers in khaki uniforms and civilian clothes.
Reuters / Photo by Scanpix / Protest in Belarus
The Viasna human rights center published the names of 328 women detained online, and militia spokeswoman Volha Cemodanova told AFP that the number of detainees would be announced on Sunday.
So many protesters have been detained that the militia has run out of minibuses, said the opposition Coordinating Council.
The opposition leader, former Belarusian presidential candidate Sviatlana Cichanouskaya, has demanded the release of detained participants in the “women’s march”.
Reuters / Photo by Scanpix / Protest in Belarus
“All detainees must be released. The staff of energy agencies must remember that Belarusians are ready to end the anonymity of those who carry out criminal warrants,” Chichanouskaya said in a statement published Saturday on the Telegram channel.
“Arbitration is happening in Minsk today. Wonderful and brave women protesting legally and peacefully are being massively and brutally detained by people without identification marks,” said the leader of the opposition who left for Lithuania, noting that “more out of 240 Belarusian girls, including those born in 2004, are already on the arrest lists. “
About 2 thousand. women participated in the Resplendent March with bright accessories and flags of the protest movement.
Among those arrested on Saturday was Nina Bahinskaya, 73, who has become one of the most famous faces of the protest movement. Of this great-grandmother, she often met with the song of “Nina! Girl! ”The militia took the flag and the flowers and pushed her into the minibus, but soon dropped them at the militia station.
“We can win!”
The Coordination Council, created by Chichanouskaya’s allies to organize a peaceful transfer of power, called the arrests a “new phase in the escalation of violence against peaceful protesters.”
Eyewitness reports of militia violence and the torture of detainees after the disputed elections led the European Parliament to call for sanctions against Lukashenko and other members of his regime.
Saturday’s protesters chanted “You and your riot squad, please wait!”, “We think we can win!”
The protest took place in the opposition after the planning of massive demonstrations on Sunday afternoon in Minsk and other cities.
Chichanouskaya will meet with the European Union’s foreign ministers and the bloc’s head of diplomacy in Brussels on Monday. Maria Zakharova, a spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, condemned the move as a “flirtation with a representative of the Belarusian opposition.”
Women’s protests in Belarus began with Lukashenko’s use of intense violence against detained protesters. Participants dressed in white with flowers formed “living chains” in Minsk and other cities, and marched through the streets.
Initially, the militia allowed these marches to take place, but several dozen of their participants were arrested last weekend.
Lukashenko, who is refusing to resign, recently warned of a possible “war” with some of his neighbors and asked Russia for support.
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