It's been a year, this Monday, August 9, 2021, that Alexander Lukashenko was re-elected President of Belarus following a fraudulent ballot. The protest was then repressed violently.

Belarus: one year after the disputed re-election of Alexander Lukashenko

Belarusian President Alxandre Lukashenko on the day of his contested re-election in Minsk, August 9, 2020. AP

Text by: RFI Follow

9 mins

It's been a year, this Monday, August 9, 2021, that Alexander Lukashenko was re-elected President of Belarus following a fraudulent ballot.

The protest was then repressed violently.

Publicity

“

Long live Belarus!

As our correspondent in Lithuania,

Marielle Vitureau

recounts

, 200 kilometers from Minsk, in Vilnius, Belarusians are following more than ever what is happening in their country, and the rallying cry of a year ago resonates again at each event organized in support of opponents.

In Vilnius, the Belarusian community meets regularly in front of the embassy, waving red and white flags, the colors of the opposition.

Almost all Belarusian diplomats stationed in Vilnius were fired.

Things have changed for Uladszislau, a university teacher in exile: “

I start my day with the news,” he

says.

We have become addicted, it's like eating or drinking ... Before going to bed, I read.
Maybe Lukashenko is dead

Is he already killed

I do not know !

→ Listen on RFI: Alexandre Loukachenko, a clever, brutal and fragile man

Seven thousand Belarusians found refuge in Lithuania in 2020.

The visits abroad of the opponent Svetlana Tikhanovksaia, in Vilnius for a year, are very popular.

A few days ago, she was at the White House one-on-one with Joe Biden.

Supporting those who have stayed is very important.

Alexander arrived a few months ago.

“

Nothing has changed, basically.
In any case, it is no longer possible to demonstrate en masse, we risk long years in prison,

”he considers.

On August 9, 2020, Alexander Lukashenko fraudulently won the Belarusian presidential election, triggering a storm.

What remains of this protest movement?

A year and several thousand arrests later, the protesters have completely disappeared, notes our correspondent in Minsk,

Ania Nowak

April 19, 2020 in Minsk: the demonstrators are in the street, under the former flag of the short-lived Belarusian People's Republic of 1918, then of the period 1991-1995, before the Lukashenko era.

AP - Dmitri Lovetsky

Dozens of independent media and NGOs have been shut down.

There are over 600 political prisoners in the country today.

Mr. Lukashenko, in power since 1994, did not hesitate to terrorize the population in order to maintain himself.

In Minsk, there is no longer any trace of the slogans.

The white, red, white flag has disappeared from public space.

“

We are not safe in our country,

admits Anna,

but it is not because we can no longer demonstrate that we agree with the regime!

She is sure, democracy will win.

If a wave of emigration has massively affected the youth, very involved in the opposition, many have chosen to stay, despite the danger.

Max, 23, did it to help those in prison, even though he knows he is risking his career and worries about the consequences for his family.

→ Read also: Babaryko, the most popular politician in Belarus

Some remain in principle, like Alexei, 30, who wants "to

have the right to live in his country"

To do it with serenity, the president would have to leave.

However, in Vilnius, there is only one solution to make him fall: dry out his wallet.

All the people met in Minsk admit that they also think about exile.

But everyone tries to hold out as long as possible, keeping a low profile.

It is now up to the diaspora to lead the fight against the regime.

A demonstration was also held Sunday in Warsaw, Poland.

Olga Kovalkova, member of the opposition and winner of the Sakharov Prize awarded by the European Parliament for actions in favor of human rights, is in exile in Poland.

Joined on the phone by

Sophia Khatsenkova

, for RFI, she paints a complicated picture of the current political situation.

Demonstration of support for the Belarusian opposition, this diamche August 8, 2021 in Warsaw, Poland.

AP - Czarek Sokolowski

I still frequently receive threats, even abroad,"

says Olga Kovalkova.

A month ago, my mother was summoned by the authorities.
So the government continues to put pressure on us to stop speaking out

”.

“

But it's impossible: we can't give up.
Even when I feel helpless about what is happening in my country, I still have hope that we will be able to overcome this difficult moment in our history.
The Belarusian people have won the victory, although it is not yet completely tangible

”.

As for Tatiana (not her real name), it was in the Czech Republic that she found refuge.

She had been arrested a year ago.

Seriously injured and tortured by the police, she spent several months in hospital before fleeing her country.

A year later, she still cannot return and looks back on this last difficult year, also on the phone: “

I had to flee, because when I was hospitalized, the commission of inquiry came to see me to threaten me.
An association offered me to seek treatment abroad, I left directly.

“

We were about 50 people to leave with this association.
We were all seriously injured

There were people with broken spines, gunshot wounds and stun grenade wounds…

”Tatiana tells us.

Only comfort in his eyes: the forces of order in Belarus have abandoned the legal proceedings against him.

But the majority of her friends have left the country, like her.

“

Those who stayed were almost all arrested.
They have had to pay fines, or have criminal cases pending.

Problem: his family is there and misses him.

“

I miss everything: my life before, my house ... Simple things like my favorite local cafe, or walking the streets of the capital.
But it's impossible, I would sign my death warrant.

Belarus: one year after the disputed re-election of Alexander Lukashenko

Belarus: one year after the disputed re-election of Alexander Lukashenko

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