Before, the police allowed women to demonstrate in peace. Nor does her desperate howl protect against brutal violence.

MOSCOW (Aftenposten): Mass arrests were reported on Sunday before the demonstrations even began in Belarus.

It’s beautiful fall weather: sunshine, but a cold draft in the air. Someone is walking. On the next road, pass dark tanks. On the lawn, heavily armed security forces chase people with red and white flags.

It is scheduled for another Sunday in Belarus.

114 protesters have been arrested in Belarus so far this weekend, according to the country’s authorities. Of those arrested, 87 are in prison, the Belarusian Interior Ministry said, according to NTB.

Brutally at work

Five weeks ago, after the acting president, Alexander Lukashenko, won 80 percent of the vote in the presidential elections, massive protests erupted across the country.

Lukashenko chose to repress the protesters with mass arrests, violence and torture.

Throughout the wave of protests, women have been central. In the first weeks you could see how members of the security service were paralyzed when they were inundated by women who hugged them and gave them flowers, or began to howl if they stopped someone close.

This has now changed. The security service was observed on Sunday morning as it brutally attacked protesters carrying the classic red and white Belarusian flag.

Why do they continue?

Despite widespread opposition, demonstrations continue in Belarus. It is large demonstrations in various cities, and tens of thousands are now heading towards the center of Minsk.

Inna Sangadzhieva of the Norwegian Helsinki Committee and Arve Hansen, Doctor of Russian Studies at the University of Tromsø and an insider on Belarus, have summed up in five points why they believe that attendance is only growing in strength:

Lukashenko’s rhetoric and brutality

The demonstrations began when Alexander Lukashenko declared victory on August 9. Since then, Lukashenko’s behavior has caused people to take to the streets, believes Sangadzhieva, explaining:

– The president has called those who protest against drug addicts, criminals, foreign rulers and mobs. He describes them as children and is very condescending. Of course it provokes, he says.

Arve Hansen also believes that Lukashenko’s actions are helping to bring fuel to the protest stake. But also because the protesters have noticed a weakness.

“Just a few days ago, Lukashenko told his own security forces that he was going to fight for Belarus, with or without them,” Hansen said.

He believes this has been perceived as a sign of weakness on the part of the president: he no longer trusts those who will protect him.

Imprisonment of opposition figures

Sunday’s rally was predicted to be the largest in the country’s history. The two experts believe this is related to the fact that the country left behind a week in which very high-profile opposition politicians were jailed and even attempted to deport them.

Maria Kolesnikova was tried for crossing the border into Ukraine, but she broke her passport to stay in Belarus. Now she is a unifying figure, almost a martyr, says Sangadzhieva.

3. New unit

Precisely the unity and the nature of the protest movement are also highlighted by both experts. Belarus has also had an opposition before, but with this year’s wave of protests, it embraces much, much more.

– You see protests across the country, from all age groups and sectors of society. And they have gone out and demonstrated together. It has created a new kind of unity and trust among the population, says Sangadzhieva.

Tired security forces?

The protests are now in their fifth week. There have been protests across the country, and many of them have been large and brutally beaten by the security forces.

– Many in the opposition are now wondering if the security forces are not starting to tire of beating peaceful protesters overnight, says Arve Hansen.

President Lukashenko travels to Moscow

On Monday, Alexander Lukashenko will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Therefore, the opposition points out that when Lukashenko leaves Belarus, there will be a sea of ​​people demanding his departure.

Helene Skjeggestad is a correspondent for Aftenposten in Russia.

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