(ConservativePeak.com)- Hundreds of people were detained in the capital city of Belarus on Sunday following an outbreak of riots and protests demanding that the authoritarian leader President Alexander Lukashenko resign. The president recently won a new term in office – his sixth – in an election that many people claim was rigged.
America wouldn’t know anything about rigged elections, would it…
Thousands of people took to the streets on Sunday, with dozens of separate rallies taking place throughout Minsk. The decision to hold several smaller rallies is a new form of protesting adopting by anti-Lukashenko protesters, knowing that it is harder for the authorities to target all protesters at once.
Demonstrators chanted “We will win” and “We believe” in the streets, with people wearing masks and dressed up as Santa Claus, holding signs with messages like, “Give Belarusians a gift: go away.”
The use of the terms “riots” here is fairly loose. While some elements of the crowd got pretty rowdy, for the most part, it was extremely peaceful and ordered. As you can see in the footage below.
More than 40 micro-marches did take place in Minsk today. All these people know that in 5 min they can be detained, beaten and jailed. Everyone who joins the protest already prevailed over fear. Belarus society matured in this uprising and developed resistance to authoritarianism pic.twitter.com/9T4W3LkOTu
— Franak Viačorka (@franakviacorka) December 6, 2020
Police officers in the city said that more than 300 people were detained during the protests, with human rights organization Viasna releasing the names of some 215 people who were arrested in Minsk and other cities across the country.
Impressive bravery, self-organization, and determination of Belarusians. Despite the preventive terror campaign, people continue gathering for protest. This video is made in one of the Minsk districts. Dozens of rallies like this are taking place in Minsk today. pic.twitter.com/HgxBEts8R6
— Franak Viačorka (@franakviacorka) December 6, 2020
Authorities have been heavy handed with protesters since the August election. Lukashenko won his sixth term in a landslide victory against his opponent Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who is seen as a hugely popular politicians.
Some 200,000 people have attended protests in the country so far, prompting authorities to use water canons and even military vehicles to keep crowds under control. And it looks like it won’t be ending any time soon.
