MINSK, Aug 14, 2020 (BSS/AFP) – Tens of thousands of Belarusians staged a
wave of peaceful protests on Thursday against President Alexander
Lukashenko’s disputed re-election and an ensuing brutal police crackdown.
In apparent concessions, Belarus announced the release of more than 1,000
detained protesters and the interior minister apologised to injured
bystanders.
European countries condemned the police violence, with the European Union
set to discuss possible sanctions on Friday.
Crowds stood on central streets in the capital Minsk waving lit-up phones
and flowers, and cheering as cars drove past honking horns in support.
Earlier tens of thousands of people formed human chains in the city, many
wearing white and holding flowers and balloons, to protest against police
brutality during four nights of unrest since Sunday’s vote.
Similar human chains formed in half a dozen other cities, local media
reported.
Official statements suggested a more conciliatory approach following public
outrage at extreme police violence including shootings and beatings.
Senate Speaker Natalya Kochanova said on television that Lukashenko had
ordered officials to review detentions and more than 1,000 people taken into
custody at protests had been released.
AFP journalists saw men and women emerge from a Minsk detention centre.
The interior ministry has said it has detained some 6,700 people at
protests since Sunday.
Interior Minister Yury Karayev said on state television: “I apologise for
the injuries of random people at protests who got caught in the middle.”
Lukashenko’s opponents accuse him of rigging the election to defeat his
main rival, popular opposition candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, who has left
the ex-Soviet country for neighbouring Lithuania.
People came out to contest the election results and police used stun
grenades, rubber bullets, tear gas, water cannon and, in at least one case,
live fire to disperse the crowds.
At least two people have died and hundreds have been wounded in the
violence while nearly 7,000 have been arrested.
– V signs as women freed –
Outside Minsk’s Okrestina detention centre, women detainees emerged first
in small groups then male detainees, as hundreds of friends and relatives
waited.
Many of the detainees looked tired and tearful but some raised V signs and
punched the air.
Volunteers handed out food and blankets and offered rides home.
The constitutional court has so far released 569 names of people sentenced
to brief jail terms, usually 15 days.
Amnesty International said detainees had testified that they received
severe beatings and threats of rape.
Those detained have said they were held in overcrowded cells with
insufficient food and water.
– ‘Change!’ –
On Thursday, demonstrators held placards reading “Change!” and “No
violence” and wore white bracelets, one of the symbols of the opposition
movement.
“We want to show that we, the women of our country, are against violence,”
said Yekaterina, a 38-year-old hairdresser wearing a white sweater and jacket
and holding a bunch of white flowers.
Large groups of workers at several major factories staged walk-outs, local
media reported.
Russia’s foreign ministry on Thursday claimed protests showed “clear
attempts at outside interference”.
But leaders of neighbouring Poland and the Baltic states urged Lukashenko
to “terminate the use of force against your people immediately”.
European Union foreign ministers were set to discuss possible new sanctions
on Belarus at an extraordinary meeting on Friday.
Prominent Belarusians have condemned the violence and urged Lukashenko, who
has ruled Belarus with an iron grip since 1994, to step down.
In an interview with RFE/RL, writer Svetlana Alexievich, winner of the 2015
Nobel literature prize, spoke of her shock at the “inhumane, satanic” actions
of riot police and urged Lukashenko to go peacefully.
– ‘Inhumane actions’ –
The interior ministry on Wednesday acknowledged that police deliberately
fired on a group of protesters, wounding one.
Officials have confirmed the deaths of two protesters.
Police said the first died on Monday when an explosive device went off in
his hand, while his widow told local media he was unarmed.
The Belarusian Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes, on
Wednesday said a 25-year-old man died after being detained and sentenced to
10 days in prison in the southeastern city of Gomel.
His mother told local media he had heart problems and had gone out to see
his girlfriend, not to take part in protests.
– Foreign-controlled ‘sheep’ –
The protests broke out after authorities said Lukashenko won 80 percent of
the vote in Sunday’s election to secure a sixth term.
Lukashenko, 65, has dismissed the demonstrators as foreign-controlled
“sheep”.
The protest movement arose in support of Tikhanovskaya, a 37-year-old
political novice who ran for president after potential opposition candidates
including her husband were jailed.
The official results gave her 10 percent of the vote, but Tikhanovskaya
said the election was rigged and claimed victory, demanding that Lukashenko
hand over power.
She left for neighbouring Lithuania on Tuesday as allies said she came
under official pressure.