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Since the criticized presidential elections on August 9 – which according to official but highly questionable figures was won by incumbent Alexander Lukashenko – the opposition has demonstrated demanding his resignation and a new election.
Also on Sunday, tens of thousands flocked to the streets and squares of the capital Minsk and other cities, as security forces mobilized, metro stations were closed, roads were blocked and mobile traffic restricted.
The opposition has called a general strike starting Monday to pressure Lukashenko, 66, who has been in power since 1994.
Several arrested
Protesters in Minsk chanted “Strike”, waved the country’s old red and white flag, which is a symbol of the opposition, and beat the drums.
In Minsk, two local journalists were arrested, among others, according to a local journalists’ organization. Dozens of protesters were arrested in the western Belarusian city of Lida, who were also hit by tear gas from security forces, reports the Russian state news agency Ria.
Opposition leader and presidential candidate Svetlana Tichanovskaya, living in exile in Lithuania, wrote in a statement that a national strike would break out on Monday unless the regime lived up to the “people’s ultimatum.”
Not clear how many
But he admits it’s unclear how many will go on strike.
Many Belarusians fear threats and pressure from the authorities and fear losing their jobs, he said during a visit to Copenhagen on Friday.
– We do not organize strikes ourselves, it is up to people to decide for themselves whether they are ready or not.
The United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom and Canada have imposed sanctions on the regime since the elections. Russia, on the other hand, has sided with Lukashenko.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has been in power in the former Soviet republic since 1994 and is often called Europe’s last dictator.
After the presidential elections on August 9, 2020, when Lukashenko declared himself the winner and claimed to have won 80 percent of the vote, protests erupted on a scale not seen since the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
According to observers, the election was not democratic. Opposition leaders were arrested before the elections and there are several reports of electoral fraud.
Since then, thousands of people have been arrested and the testimonies of beatings and torture by the police are numerous.
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