Violent clashes between protesters and law enforcement forces in Belarus

Minsk and several other Belarusian cities experienced a night of unrest. A night when preliminary election results were announced. Alexander Lukashenko spoke of his decisive victory in the elections and the beginning of his sixth term in office, while protesters alleged election fraud.

Opposition forces consider the announced preliminary results of the Belarusian presidential election vote count to be devoid of any credibility. According to these preliminary results, Alexander Lukashenko, the current president of the country, has secured more than 79 percent of the votes.

His electoral rival, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, according to the same announced results, has secured only 6.8 percent of the votes. The announcement of these results led to gatherings of protesters in Minsk, the capital of Belarus, as well as in several other cities in the country.

International news agencies reported violent clashes between security forces and protesters. It is said that during these disturbances, at least one person was killed and more than 120 people were arrested. No precise figures on the number of wounded have been released yet.

Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, Lukashenko’s main rival in the presidential election, said after the announcement of preliminary election results: “I believe what I see with my own eyes. I see that the majority stands behind us”.

This is while Lydia Yermoshina, head of Lukashenko’s election team, has asked Tikhanovskaya to accept her defeat in this election and acknowledge it.

The voice of protesters

Tikhanovskaya’s spokesperson, after announcing the preliminary results of Belarus’s presidential election, declared: “Accepting the results of such elections is impossible”. She said, “It appears that a state polling institution announces an 80 percent victory for Lukashenko, and such a result has nothing to do with reality”.

Experts in international political affairs also consider the statistics and results announced by the Belarusian government to be unrealistic. Belarus is currently facing a severe economic crisis, and in recent weeks, growing discontent among the people of this country has fueled protests against Lukashenko.

Clashes between Tikhanovskaya’s supporters and law enforcement forces have occurred in many Belarusian cities. It is said that thousands of people gathered in central squares of cities and protested against election fraud.

Videos published on social media depict how police forces dealt with protesters in Minsk. Police used tear gas, among other measures, to disperse the protesters.

Although the streets of major Belarusian cities, including Minsk, were reported to be calm in the early morning hours of Monday, August 10, the opposition reported on social media that protests against Lukashenko continue.

It is said that the election website has become inaccessible. Moreover, access to many other websites has been disrupted. This is while the Telegram network remains accessible.

Incapable government

One member of Tikhanovskaya’s election team reported an unprecedented political crisis in Belarus. The opposition has accused Lukashenko’s government of tampering with election results. The opposition claims that voter turnout in many electoral districts was reported to exceed 100 percent.

Tikhanovskaya believes that the Belarusian government is incapable of running the country and must acknowledge that the majority of the country’s people oppose the continuation of Alexander Lukashenko’s rule.

It should be noted that Tikhanovskaya became a presidential election candidate after the arrest of her husband, Sergei Tikhanovsky, and his exclusion from the electoral competition. Sergei Tikhanovsky is a famous blogger in Belarus.

Alexander Lukashenko has now ruled Belarus for 26 years. His victory in the presidential election in this controversial country would effectively mean his sixth term in office.

Source: DW