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The only thing that matters when it comes to demos is how long they last. To be successful, they must be big enough. But above all, they must last a long time.
A corrupt dictator or leader never goes without a fight. In Ukraine, protests lasted just over two months before President Viktor Yanukovych drew conclusions and fled to Russia.
“We are not rats, we are Belarusians, you run,” it says on the woman’s poster, where “duo” refers to President Lukashenko.
Photo: AP
Let the protests end strong on the news agenda is morally crucial for the protesters. Something that Lukashenko understands very well. That is why it has deprived a large part of foreign journalists of their accreditation. Several have been deported, including DN’s Paul Hansen.
Nonetheless, coverage has continued thanks to Belarusian media tut.by and Nexta. Gone are the days when information flows could be stopped by sending foreign journalists. This is evidenced by the videos of today’s demonstration, with giant crowds shouting “Stand back!” Under a sea of red and white Belarusian flags. on the streets of Minsk.
The struggle in Belarus between the people and the dictator has come and gone. At first, it appeared that Lukashenko’s violent beating of protesters on the night of August 10, after the presidential elections, would quell the protests. Then the movement made a powerful comeback.
Partly with a giant A demonstration on August 16 when more than 100,000 Belarusians demanded Lukashenko’s resignation in Minsk. On the one hand – which was even more important – with the workers’ strikes in the state factories. No one saw Lukashenko’s face when the factory workers, his own voters, shouted “RESIGN!” he can forget it. A humiliated and crooked dictator.
President Lukashenko was ousted when he visited a tractor factory on the outskirts of Minsk a week after the presidential elections.
Photo: Nikolai Petrov / AP
But Lukashenko replied. In several factories, workers have returned to work. So-called Lukashenko sympathizers, in practice government employees, have been transported to the capital, where they have held counter-demonstrations. Today, thousands of Omon soldiers (soldiers of the elite troops of the Interior Ministry, specially trained to quell protests) were on the streets of Minsk. So far no beatings have been recorded in the afternoon: Lukashenko has clearly realized that the blow is being returned. Instead, at least 125 people have been arrested.
The dictator is now trying to gain ground through gunfire and intimidation tactics. The Plaza de la Independencia is closed and heavily equipped soldiers against riot gear are running through the city and blocking the roads.
The dictator is trying now gain the upper hand through shooting and intimidation tactics. The Plaza de la Independencia is closed and heavily equipped soldiers against riot gear are running through the city and blocking the roads.
The independent Belarusian Telegram channel Nexta shows movies of tank columns entering Minsk. In his presidential palace, Lukashenko himself has barricaded himself behind soldiers and policemen to celebrate his birthday. The protesters try to reach the palace to congratulate him peacefully demanding his resignation, but the soldiers keep them at a distance.
A leader who digs in against his own people he can hardly survive in the long run. This does not mean that Lukashenko does not try, ultimately calling on Russian troops. Putin and Lukashenko will meet next week, and Putin has already announced that Russian troops are ready to be dispatched to Belarus.
Although Putin currently promises military aid to Lukashenko, the Kremlin has no loyalty to Lukashenko. The Kremlin is loyal only to its own interests. Lukashenko has long been considered a parasite.
When the Armenians did revolution, Moscow chose to support the protesters. For Russia to enter Belarus to support Lukashenko is entirely possible and nothing that Putin doubts about. It all depends on the horse that decides to stay.
Expect a new demo no later than next Sunday.
