Out Of The Borders Freedom
Belarusian protests in 2020
A review of the events
by Chiara Parrucci
Since August 2020, Belarus has been living through a period of crisis of human rights triggered by the presidential election considered by many neither transparent nor fair. In January, I interviewed Natallia Satsunkevich, a human rights activist from the Center “Viasna” to learn more. This NGO is one of the oldest and biggest human rights centers in Belarus, active in promotion of democracy and human rights and in support of civic initiatives. Created during the protests in 1996, from 2004 it is part of the International Federation for Human Rights. While doing their job, the life of Natallia and her colleagues are often endangered.
Lukashenka has been in power since 1994, as
How it all started
Belarusians were called to elect the President of the Republic on the 9th of August 2020. The whole election process has been accompanied by peaceful acts of protests. In June, Belarusian people organised chains of solidarity after Viktar Babaryka saw his candidacy rejected. He was considered one of the three top candidates and opponents of the incumbent president Lukashenka, together with Valery Tsapkala and Siarhei Tsikhanouski. All of them got arrested before the election took place. Following the arrest of her husband, Sviatla-
he consolidated his position with two referendums allowing him to take part in all the subsequent elections.
The 9th of August 2020
When
the election results went public, Lukashenka obtained 79.9% of the vote and for the sixth time in a row won against his opponents. People from all segments of the society claimed that the election was rigged and took to the streets in a peaceful act of protest. “Generally speaking, they were young people, mostly men, but there were also some women” Satsunkevich said. In the following days, a growing number of women joined the protests. From the 12th of August, during the day Belarusian women, all in white with flowers in their hands, started marching along the main streets of Minsk.
na Tsikhanouskaya took his place and led the electoral campaign next to Maryia Kalesnikava and Veranika Tsapkala. Sviatlana’s party was supported by many among the population not only or not particularly because of the party Violence against protesters programme, but as an alternative to Lukashenka, that is, as an alternative to “the absence of This is not the first time for Belarusians to take change” as Satsunkevich described it. to the streets. The year 1996 is remembered as
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