Portrait of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko
Audio 03:33
Belarusian Presidents (L) Alexander Lukashenko and Russian Presidents Vladimir Putin September 14, 2020 in Sochi, Russia.
Reuters / Russian Presidential Office
By: Anastasia Becchio
8 min
The Belarusian president faces a sixth Sunday of mobilization of the population which disputes the result of the election of August 9.
The determination of the opposition does not seem to have been achieved, despite the repression and arrests which have multiplied.
In difficulty in his country, Alexandre Loukachenko turns once again to Russia.
While he was still accusing Moscow of seeking to vassalize his country, he visited Vladimir Putin in Sochi earlier this week, who promised him a loan of $ 1.5 billion.
Back on the personality of the man who is nicknamed the last dictator in Europe who is facing an unprecedented crisis
Publicity
Alexander Lukashenko with his hands clasped, his whole body stretched out towards Vladimir Putin, sitting casually in the back of his chair, his legs wide apart: the body language of the meeting between the Russian and Belarusian presidents has been widely commented on.
Valeri Karabalevich, author of the only biography of Alexander Lukashenko available in French "
The Satrap of Belarus
": "
His gestures, the fact that he wrote down Putin's words in a notebook
: it was all funny.
It was a very awkward demonstration of submission.
And that is probably why he immediately organized a meeting in Minsk to try to erase this negative effect that he was able to produce among senior officials by playing the submissive.
"
Returning to Minsk, Alexandre Loukachenko multiplies the initiatives: meeting with the officials, appearance at a giant concert organized exclusively for women, as an echo to the weekly female demonstrations of the opposition.
“
The neighboring countries refuse to recognize the result of our election and following a Venezuelan scenario, they have found a
Belarusian '
Guaido
' and declared her president.
"
After having scared his competitor Svetlana Tikhanovskaya to Lithuania, after forcing several members of the coordination council of the opposition into exile and placing the most recalcitrant in solitary confinement, after having ordered the violent repression of the demonstrations, Alexander Lukashenko attempted a more political phase, analyzes Alexandre Fedouta, who was his first communications manager when he took the presidency in 1994.
“
After going through a shock phase, he starts to act differently.
Obviously, he obtained directives from the Kremlin that it was necessary to renounce too violent use of force and that is why he is trying his hand in a more political register.
Could that convince the population
?
I don't know, but in any case, he won't be able to convince the majority because the majority of people don't trust him, she is tired of him
”
A fatigue which is reflected every Sunday by these demonstrations which bring together tens of thousands of people across the country and this slogan: go away.
Nicknamed Sacha 3%, his supposed popularity rate, according to his detractors, the former director of sovkhoze, now autocratic president, denounces a plot of the Baltic countries or Poland to overthrow him and tells that the Americans are watching his every move. thanks to their satellites and directly giving orders to the demonstrators via a control center in Warsaw.
But beyond these fanciful declarations, he is above all ready to do anything to stay in power, according to his biographer.
“
He found himself in a state of psychological stress because he really didn't expect it.
He continued to believe that he was supported by the population and this led him to make mistakes, such as, for example, winning 80% of the vote in the presidential election.
If he had attributed 51% and 45% for Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, a significant part of the population could have believed it, but there, a majority took it as an insult.
I think nothing can force him to make concessions, because power is his raison d'être.
"
The inauguration ceremony of the Belarusian president is due to take place before November 5.
The opposition is determined to stop it.
Alexander Lukashenko could be tempted to use force once again to keep it at all costs.
Newsletter
Receive all the international news directly in your mailbox
I subscribe
Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application
google-play-badge_FR
Belarus
Alexander Lukashenko
On the same subject
Belarus: Putin "convinced" that Lukashenko will overcome the crisis
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko visits Vladimir Putin
Belarus: tens of thousands of demonstrators in Minsk, 400 arrests