Category Archives: Alexander Lukashenko

Belarus: personal stories from a country in turmoil – documentary

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Mass protests erupted across Belarus following the widely disputed election that put President Alexander Lukashenko in office for a sixth term. Three Belarusian filmmakers have documented personal stories of those caught up in the political turmoil. 

Maksim Shved was arrested, imprisoned and then released as the protests around him swelled. Ekaterina Markavets observes the psychological burden of her fellow citizens – she worked with professional psychologists who set up a volunteer support service for people affected by current events. Andrei Kutsila follows a celebrated Belarusian broadcast journalist who worked for state TV for nearly 40 years and who is now in hospital recovering from injuries sustained at a protest. All three filmmakers wonder what the future holds for their country and fellow citizens

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Belarus opposition leader to ask Merkel about upping pressure on Lukashenko

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Svetlana Tikhanovskaya says in interview that people can no longer live under dictatorship, as more 100,000 protest on Sunday

The Belarusian opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya will meet Angela Merkel in Berlin on Tuesday, as the standoff in Belarus increasingly takes on a geopolitical dimension, becoming one more bone of contention between Russia and the west.

Tikhanovskaya said she will ask the German chancellor about “her potential participation as a mediator” in talks between protest leaders and the government of the embattled autocrat Alexander Lukashenko, who has been backed by the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and has flatly refused to participate in negotiations.

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EU imposes sanctions on Belarus officials but not on Lukashenko

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Late-night talks end standoff with Cyprus, which had wanted bloc to get tough with Turkey

European Union sanctions against 40 Belarusian officials accused of vote rigging and political repression have come into force, after the bloc’s leaders resolved a dispute with Cyprus that caused an embarrassing delay to action.

In a standoff that tarnished the EU’s credibility, Cyprus had insisted that its EU partners take a tough stance against Turkey for its energy exploration in disputed eastern Mediterranean waters off its coast, before it would agree to the Belarus sanctions.

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Belarus accuses western nations of sowing ‘chaos and anarchy’

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Country’s foreign minister attacks western ‘interference’, as Emmanuel Macron says president Lukashenko must go

Belarus’s foreign minister, Vladimir Makei, has accused western countries of attempting to sow “chaos and anarchy” in the former Soviet republic, which has been rocked by street protests since a contested election last month that was claimed by President Alexander Lukashenko.

“We are seeing attempts to destabilise the situation in the country,” Makei told the UN general assembly in a video statement on Saturday. “Interference in our internal affairs, sanctions and other restrictions on Belarus will have the opposite effect, and are harmful for absolutely everyone.”

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Video shows taxi driver helping protester escape police in Belarus

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Clip showing movie-like pursuit and escape in Minsk spreads across social media

An unnamed Belarusian taxi driver who helped a man escape from riot police during protests against veteran leader Alexander Lukashenko has transfixed social media users who have shared footage of the dramatic incident.

The 16-second video clip, filmed by a Euroradio.fm reporter, features a movie-like pursuit and escape that unfolded in a Minsk residential area on Wednesday evening as crowds protested against what they said was the illegitimate inauguration of Lukashenko.

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Protesters clash with police in Belarus after Lukashenko sworn in again

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Water cannon and stun grenades used by riot squad after opposition denounce president’s secret ceremony as illegitimate

Riot police clashed with protesters in Minsk on Wednesday evening, using water cannon and stun grenades, hours after the inauguration of Alexander Lukashenko for another term as president.

Several thousand protesters, many carrying the red-and white opposition flag, took to the streets of the capital Minsk and other cities following a surprise announcement that Lukashenko had been sworn in for a sixth term in office following disputed elections in August.

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EU fails to agree on Belarus sanctions – video report

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Large protests against the veteran Belarusian president, Alexander Lukashenko, continued with tens of thousands of people taking to the streets of the capital, Minsk, for the sixth weekend in a row. 

The demonstrations began when Lukashenko secured a sixth term after claiming victory in an election that has had its legitimacy called into question.

The leader of the main opposition party, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, was in Brussels on Monday to push the European Union to agree on sanctions against officials accused of election-rigging in Belarus but the EU failed to reach unanimity on the decision despite not recognising Lukashenko's legitimacy.

As violent arrests of protesters continue in Belarus, anonymous hackers leaked the personal data of 1,000 police officers in retaliation.

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Belarus could bring down ‘another iron curtain’ across Europe

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UN investigator warns of ‘catastrophic’ stiuation with more than 10,000 protesters ‘abusively arrested’

A United Nations investigator has warned of the danger of “another iron curtain” falling across Europe during an ill-tempered debate in Geneva on alleged human rights violations in Belarus.

“Let’s not allow another iron curtain to descend on the European continent,” Anaïs Marin, the UN’s special rapporteur on Belarus, said, in an urgent session of the body’s 47-member human rights council that also heard from the Belarus opposition leader, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya.

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‘The only way to stop violence’: why protesters are unmasking Belarus police

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Pulling off balaclavas and publishing names is new tactic to stem harassment and assaults

During the past month’s uprising against Alexander Lukashenko, riot police and assorted thugs loyal to his regime have been given carte blanche by the Belarusian president to harass, assault and arrest peaceful protesters.

In recent days, however, protesters have found out that for all Lukashenko’s men’s ruthlessness and impunity, they have a vulnerable point: their faces. Grab at the mask of a policeman and he will run for cover.

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Belarus charges opposition leader with ‘undermining national security’

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Maria Kolesnikova could face up to five years in prison as president cracks down on opposition

Belarusian authorities have charged the opposition figure Maria Kolesnikova with “actions aimed at undermining national security”, a charge that carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

The charge, announced by the country’s investigative committee, is the latest move in a crackdown on opposition leaders by the embattled president, Alexander Lukashenko, who has lost legitimacy among much of the population but retains the support of law enforcement agencies.

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Russia to loan Belarus $1.5bn as Lukashenko tells Putin: ‘a friend is in trouble’

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Belarusian president flies to Sochi for talks with Russian leader after month of protests

The embattled Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko is holding talks with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, a meeting seen as crucial to determining whether or not Lukashenko can survive a protest movement against him.

The pair met at Putin’s residence in Sochi, the first foreign trip Lukashenko has made since protests began a month ago.

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Belarus protests continue as 100,000 join rally against Lukashenko – video

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An estimated 100,000 people took to the streets of Belarus's capital, Minsk, as protests against the president, Alexander Lukashenko, continued for the fifth weekend. The large demonstrations come as Lukashenko is set to meet with Vladimir Putin for the first time since the presidential election on 9 August. Lukashenko’s claim that he won a landslide victory triggered the growing uprising against his 26-year reign

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Belarus: 100,000 join rally against Lukashenko on eve of Putin showdown

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Protesters hold placards criticising Russian support as they march on president’s Minsk residence

Attempts by Belarus’s president, Alexander Lukashenko, to crush popular protests against him failed on Sunday when more than 100,000 people marched on his residence in the capital, Minsk, with other demonstrations across the country.

There was no sign that the anti-Lukashenko movement is declining or fading away. Instead protesters took to the streets in huge numbers for the fifth weekend in a row, defying riot police who blocked off the city centre with military vehicles.

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Belarus: dozens of peaceful female protesters thrown into vans by riot police

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Rally in Minsk against disputed re-election of Lukashenko was attended by thousands

Belarusian riot police detained several dozen women demonstrators and threw them into vans, as thousands took to the streets of the capital to protest against police violence and electoral fraud.

Before a massive protest expected on Sunday, columns of female protesters gathered in central Minsk for a peaceful women’s protest. Some beat saucepans with ladles and others chanted “Bring back our Masha”, referring to opposition leader Maria Kolesnikova by her diminutive name.

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Can Belarus protesters topple Europe’s last dictator? – video explainer

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Thousands of Belarusians have defied beatings and arrests to demand the resignation of the country's authoritarian leader, Alexander Lukashenko, after he claimed victory in an election they say was rigged. Protesters have flooded Belarus's capital, Minsk, every week for a month to call for new, free and fair elections, as well as an end to police violence. But Lukashenko has held on with the support of the police and military. Can the protesters topple the man often called Europe's last dictator?

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Belarus opposition figure Maxim Znak taken from office by masked men

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Lawyer was one of few remaining leading members of coordination council still free

Belarusian authorities have detained one of the last leading members of an opposition council who remained free, moving methodically to end a month of protests against President Alexander Lukashenko.

Lawyer Maxim Znak, a member of the coordination council created by the opposition to facilitate talks with the country’s leader of 26 years on a transition of power, was taken out of the council’s office by unidentified people in ski masks, his associate Gleb German said. He said Znak only had time to text message “masks” before they took the phone away from him.

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Lukashenko: If Belarus collapses, Russia is next – video

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During an interview with Russian journalists, Alexander Lukashenko said the massive protests in his country have been 'tragic' for him but insisted that he has retained the support of most of the country. The Belarusian president blamed the US for instigating the protests and warned Russia that it could face similar demonstrations in the future.

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Belarus: Lukashenko vows to stay in first interview since protests

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President tells Russian journalists that if he resigned the opposition would destroy Belarus

The Belarusian president, Alexander Lukashenko, has used his first interview since mass protests erupted against his rule to say he does not plan to step down soon.

Lukashenko spoke to a group of pro-Kremlin Russian journalists including the editor-in-chief of Russia Today, Margarita Simonyan, and made it clear he plans to fight to cling on to power.

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Belarus opposition leader Maria Kolesnikova ‘snatched from street’ in Minsk

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Kolesnikova on council calling for a peaceful transfer of power amid post-election protests

Unidentified masked men snatched the leading Belarusian opposition figure, Maria Kolesnikova, from the street in the centre of the capital, Minsk, on Monday and drove her away in a minivan, witnesses told local media.

Kolesnikova was one of the campaign partners of the opposition candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, who claimed victory against the long-ruling president, Alexander Lukashenko, in disputed elections on 9 August.

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Belarus protests show no sign of fading as 100,000 turn out in Minsk

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Similar marches held in other cities including Brest a month after disputed election

Huge protests have taken place across Belarus against the embattled regime of Alexander Lukashenko, with demonstrators marching on the president’s residence in the capital, Minsk, for a fourth weekend in a row.

More than 100,000 people filled Minsk’s Independence Avenue calling for Lukashenko to step down. There were similar marches in other cities, including Brest, Vitebsk and Grodno.

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