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Tens of thousands of people defied warnings from the security services and took part in the marches against Lukashenko, marches that are now in their fifth week.
Images from the Belarusian capital show protesters in the streets waving the historic red and white flag of Belarus and shouting “Belarus is alive.” According to a human rights organization, up to 100,000 people participated in the march in Minsk.
The Plaza de la Independencia was completely cordoned off and the police blocked the protesters’ route with barricades and barbed wire. The uniformed officers were side by side behind the shields.
– Will be pressured to resign
The photos also show armored vehicles and security forces detaining people. Authorities previously warned that they will crack down on those who defy the stay-at-home order. Police in riot gear stormed a rally on Friday, taking hundreds of protesters away by truck.
Will meet power with power
The Belarusian Interior Ministry says it will not hesitate to use force against protesters if protesters use force first.
– These people may not have been able to put out all the fire in them, well, they try. The rebel police are in place, the Ministry of the Interior is in place. We will not blink, Interior Minister Jury Karaev tells the state television channel STV, according to the Russian news agency. Tass.
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He marched to the Presidential Palace
Many continued their march beyond Independence Square, located in a part of the city other than Lukashenko’s palace. Some waved rainbow flags and played music. Opposition politician Maria Kolesnikova was among the protesters.
A major riot police revolt was also deployed in the presidential palace. They were equipped with water cannons to stop the crowd.
– This sea of people cannot be stopped by military equipment, water cannons, propaganda and arrests. Most Belarusians want a peaceful takeover and we will not stop promoting our demands, said Kolesnikova, who heads a coordinating council created by the opposition to enter into dialogue with Lukashenko.
The 66-year-old president has rejected all attempts to dialogue with the coordinating council and some of the members have been detained. One of them, Olga Kovalova, was deported from Belarus this weekend and taken to Poland by the police.
Curved by the podium in the tractor factory
Use humor
Despite the unresolved condition dragging on, protesters say they are determined not to be exhausted. Some protesters have used humor as a weapon against the authoritarian president.
“Lukashenko, start building houses near Yanukovych,” read a poster referring to former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, who fled to Russia in 2014 after months of protests against the regime.
“The agricultural collective went bankrupt,” read another poster, referring to Lukashenko working as the director of a state agricultural collective before entering politics and sticking to the Soviet line on the Belarusian economy.
– It has become a military conflict every time.
More cities
Demonstrations are also reported in other cities. Photographs from Grodno show uniformed officials assaulting protesters, and tear gas is said to have been used. Similar scenes have taken place in the city of Brest, according to reports from opposition groups.
Hundreds of thousands have demonstrated in Belarus since the disputed presidential election on August 9. The protesters have not only demanded the resignation of the president, but have also called for the release of political prisoners, new elections and the prosecution of police violence.
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