Protests Calling for Lukashenko’s Resignation Continue in Belarus

Belarus, an Eastern European country, has been embroiled in weeks of protests since the August 9, 2020 presidential elections which resulted in a sixth term for incumbent Aleksandr G. Lukashenko. Lukashenko has often been labeled the “last dictator in Europe.”

The results of the August 9 elections show that Lukashenko received 80% of the vote, but many Western governments assert that the election process was rigged

by Lukashenko’s government. In 1994, Lukashenko’s first electoral victory, the election was seen as free and fair by the international community. Since then, every election has been debated. Although, it is difficult for outside observers, or even Belarusians, to gauge how popular Lukashenko actually is. For the most part, private polling is illegal and government polls are typically guarded very close to the vest.

Apart from manipulating votes and election results, the Lukashenko regime was very active in the months leading up to the election jailing those who spoke out against the sitting government. According to the non-profit Human Rights Watch, between May 6 and May 13, over 120 critics, opposition leaders, and journalists were arbitrarily jailed in 13 cities across Belarus.

Since the August 9 election results, protestors have taken to Minsk and other prominent cities in Belarus to express their disdain for the authoritarian regime amid calls for Lukashenko’s resignation.

On Sunday, August 13, more than 100,000 citizens took to the streets of Minsk to protest for the fifth weekend in the row. Lukashenko’s attempt to forcibly halt the demonstrations seem to have had no effect on the Belarus’s persistent protestors. Protestors have been jailed and kidnapped over the course of the protests in Belarus, yet they continue to march the streets of Minsk. An anonymous protestor told Reuters, “Soldiers rounded us up in several circles, people were selectively pulled out of the crowd and beaten.”Just last week, Maria Kolesnikova, a prominent opposition leader, was taken off of the street by masked men and now faces 2-5 years in prison for “inciting a coup.”

Aleksandr Lukashenko has recently sought the support of Russian President Vladmir Putin, who is no stranger to authoritarianism and quelling dissent, himself. Putin’s support for Lukashenko has only served to intensify the efforts of the protestors. Nigel Gould-Davies, the UK’s former ambassador to Belarus, said of Putin’s support for Lukashenko, “Russia will turn the friendliest neighbor they have into a population that sees them as an accessory to Lukashenko and his authoritarianism.”

The protests in Belarus show no signs of slowing as 60-year old Oleg Zimin told AFP News, “I came out for freedom and I am going to protest until we win it through peaceful means.”