Belarus: repression hardens, protest increasingly silenced
A woman is arrested by Belarusian security forces during a demonstration in Minsk.
March 27, 2021. via REUTERS - BELAPAN
Text by: RFI Follow
4 min
Nine months after his contested re-election, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko continues to toughen repression.
The human rights situation is deteriorating and the list of political prisoners is growing every day.
The opposition continues to organize abroad.
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From our correspondent in Minsk,
Ania Nowak
In the Belarusian capital, there is a rather strange atmosphere, a paradoxical feeling of freedom.
Everything is open: bars, restaurants, theaters, stadiums, and there has been no lockdown.
In appearance, then, you can do whatever you want in Minsk.
In reality, the repression has intensified and the Belarusians are on their guard.
For the opposition, the situation there is very difficult.
Every week, journalists, bloggers, politicians, demonstrators, sometimes minors, are tried.
This Wednesday, May 12, a musician, Aliaksei Sanchuk, 30, was sentenced to six years in prison for participating in a peaceful demonstration.
Today there are 370 political prisoners.
Their lawyers are threatened, imprisoned or deprived of their license.
Raids took place in the few associations that could still work in the country, such as Viasna, which has been defending human rights for twenty-five years.
Their offices in Minsk have been closed and a criminal investigation is underway.
Stopped for a bouquet of flowers or striped socks
The Belarusians, who had mobilized strongly to denounce
the election of Alexander Lukashenko
, let go. The brutality of the regime, which does not tolerate any white-red-white flag, the symbol of protest, is working. Fear has won. You can get arrested for a bouquet of flowers or striped socks, if they are the wrong color. Many Belarusians are exhausted by these arrests, which they find absurd, and in fact, the protests have almost disappeared.
Those who still have the courage to take to the streets - and they are few in number - do so with infinite caution.
Gatherings are organized on a very small scale, between people who know each other, to prevent KGB infiltration.
"
I was able to participate in one of them a few days ago: I had to remove the sim card from my phone, hide my face with a mask and a hood,"
testifies our correspondent in Minsk
.
Others changed their shoes for fear of being identified in the photos
.
"
European and American sanctions
Even the conversations have changed: we discuss much less politics and much more exile.
Thousands of Belarusians have already left the country, especially young graduates.
Meanwhile, the opposition continues to act, especially from abroad.
It is structured around its leader
Svetlana Tikhanovskaïa
.
While Belarusian political life was non-existent, in recent months, parties, associations, independent unions have emerged, citizen consultations are organized online.
The opposition is also struggling on the diplomatic scene, to obtain sanctions from the European Union and the United States, for example.
To sum up, Belarus today is a dictatorship that is strengthening in face-to-face, but a democracy that is developing in isolation.
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To read also
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Tikhanovskaya: "Freedom, honesty and transparency, this is what Belarus wants"
Belarus requests extradition of opponent Tikhanovskaya, Lithuania refuses
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Belarus
Alexander Lukashenko
Human rights
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