The 2020–2021 Belarusian protests wereGlobal Protest Tracker, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (website visited on 21 October 2021)Why wearing the wrong socks is risky in Belarus, BBC News (6 May 2021) a series of political demonstrations and protests against the Belarusian government and President Alexander Lukashenko. The largest anti-government protests in the history of Belarus, the demonstrations began in the lead-up to and during the 2020 presidential election, in which Lukashenko sought his sixth term in office. In response to the demonstrations, a number of relatively small pro-government rallies were held.
Timeline
2020
August
As the protests swept across Belarus following the election results, the primary opposition candidate Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya published a video saying that she left Belarus for Lithuania. She was presumed to have been coerced to leave while also submitting a complaint to the CEC (Central Election Commission of Belarus).
On 11 August, during the evening, the protests continued in the major cities of Belarus, including Brest, Homel, Hrodna, Mahiliou, Viciebsk, Baranavichy, Maladzyechna, Navahrudak, Navapolatsk and Zhodzina.Второй день протестов в Беларуси. Первый погибший и баррикады . News.tut.by (11 August 2020). Retrieved 12 August 2020. In Minsk, protesters changed their tactics, switching positions from one part of the city to another, similar to the "be water" tactics used in the 2019–2020 protests in Hong Kong. Protesters barricaded the area around the Riga Market in the center of Minsk. Government forces responded by using tear gas, throwing stun grenades and firing rubber bullets at the protesters at close range. A demonstrator, Alexander Taraikovsky, died near Pushkinskaya metro station.
The government's riot police (AMAP/OMON), internal troops, and anti-terrorist "Almaz" elite special force participated in the suppression of the protests in Minsk. Water cannons were used near the Riga Market, and rubber bullets were widely used. Mass protests were reported. It was reported that AMAP/OMON squads seized some ambulances or used visually similar vans to deceive the protesters into allowing them through the barricades.
On 11 August, the protests resumed in Minsk and other major cities. Rubber bullets and stun grenades were widely used. One death was reported, with Hienadz Shutau, in critical condition and with severe brain damage as of 14 August, succumbing to his injuries on 19 August in Minsk.
Molotov cocktails were thrown at security officials in Minsk. Activists built barricades and burned tires near the Riga Market. Telegram channel Nexta, used by the opposition, published messages alleging violence by law enforcement officers. Telegram published aggressive vocabulary against law enforcement, such as "punishers" and "fascists". Telegram was one of the few accessible resources during a concurrent internet blackout and VPN usage was ubiquitous, with Psiphon usage skyrocketing. On the evening of 11 August, while the Internet shutdown continued, 45 percent of people using Telegram protest chats in Belarus were online, despite the government's efforts to block online access.
In Homel, a 25-year-old man died on 12 August after waiting in a security forces detainee van for many hours in hot weather. He had a heart condition and wasn't given proper medical attention in time. Also in Homel, relatives and friends of over 500 arrested people were not allowed to visit them. The local police did not disclose any information about their relatives. It was also reported that a policewoman abused an arrested woman there.
During widespread protests in Hrodna, a 5-year-old was injured, and their father was arrested after the car they were in was rammed by government forces.
On 12 August, people in Minsk and later in other cities lined up on the streets to protest against the government's suppression. The majority of the protesters were women wearing white clothes.A white ribbon was proposed by the election HQ of Tsikhanouskaya as a sign to identify those who wanted to vote for her. Former members of the Belarusian military, police and special forces expressed their solidarity with the opposition by publishing videos publicly throwing their uniforms in the garbage, condemning violent acts by the security forces, and calling on the authorities to stop opposing the will of the people.
On the same day, the Belarus Interior Minister stated that a "shoot to kill" policy in cases of self-defense was permitted.
In many places in Minsk, riot police were observed moving in ambulances and shooting at people, stopping near crowds, which is a violation of the 1949 Geneva Convention. On 13 August, many lines of protesters demonstrating in solidarity against violence by the police were observed,В Минске уже с раннего утра — цепи солидарности . Tut.by (13 August 2020)Минск сегодня вечером: что происходит в городе . Onliner.by (13 August 2020)Что сегодня происходит в Гомеле, Гродно, Могилеве и других городах . Onliner.by (13 August 2020). including thousands of women dressed in white. Strikes of workers in several state-owned factories also took place.
Numerous reports of different law violations in Belarusian prisons (severe overcrowding, beating, and abuses against prisoners, including torture) were submitted.
On 14 August, peaceful protests continued nationwide. Workers from Minsk Tractor Works also joined the protest in front of the Government House in Minsk. They took part in a massive march carrying banners claiming that 16,000 workers were supporting this protest. According to the Independent, "a group of soldiers guarding the building lowered their shields, appearing to side with the protesters".Wavering soldiers and striking workers pile pressure on Lukashenko as Belarus protest take revolutionary turn. The Independent (14 August 2020).
There were multiple instances of police expressing support for and even embracing protesters.Oliver Carroll, Wavering soldiers and striking workers pile pressure on Lukashenko as Belarus protests take a revolutionary turn: Embattled autocrat warns Belarusians to stay off the streets, The Independent (14 August 2020).
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya asked Belarusian authorities to stop the violence, "engage in dialogue", and call on mayors to organize peaceful rallies across the country over the weekend.
On 15 August, post-election protests continued to grow. For the first time, government-supported television demonstrated episodes of what was happening on the streets without any censorship. They streamed a farewell ceremony for the murdered during a peaceful protest on 10 August. The Associated Press released a video showing the moment when Alexander Taraikovsky was killed.
It was reported that Lukashenko's authorities asked Kremlin representatives about the possibility of Lukashenko escaping to Russia. Furthermore, it was reported that Russia admitted that Lukashenko's resignation as the head of state was likely. The editor-in-chief of the anti-government website Charter 97 claimed that Russian troops were concentrated along the Belarus-Russia border in preparation for a potential invasion, possibly within the next 48 hours. It was also reported that Lukashenko spoke to President Putin with both sides expressing confidence that all existing problems would be settled soon; the possibility of foreign mediation was firmly rejected by Lukashenko.
Peaceful demonstrations took place in several cities, including Moscow, where 400 mainly wearing white formed a chain near the Belarusian Embassy in support of the protesters.
Some protesters in Minsk expressed solidarity with the anti-government Khabarovsk Krai protests in the Russian Far East.
On 16 August, Lukashenko's supporters were bussed into Minsk from various places across the country for a pro-Lukashenko rally, which had a much smaller turnout than the opposition demonstrations,Sergei Kuznetsov, Massive Belarus opposition rally calls for Lukashenko's ouster, Politico (16 August 2020). which were the largest yet. The Belarusian Interior Ministry claimed a turnout of 65,000 at the pro-Lukashenko rally. A Reuters reporter estimated a turnout of 5,000. In a speech to supporters, Lukashenko said he would not step down, claimed that NATO was amassing "military power on the western borders", and warned supporters not to test him or they would be "beggars and struggle to live". Lukashenko also rejected calls for new elections. NATO rejected Lukashenko's claims. Right before the speech, Lukashenko called Russian President Putin for the second time in two days.
Opposition groups called for a "National March for Freedom" in Minsk and similar marches to occur in cities and towns across the country. Supporters were asked to converge on government buildings and call for the immediate release of all political prisoners, for those responsible for the deaths and torture of protesters to be brought to justice and for the resignation of Alexander Lukashenko. Organizers estimated that 100,000–220,000 people attended the Minsk demonstration. Many were carrying red and white flags. The Belarusian press reported that persons in civilian clothes made arbitrary detentions of opposition supporters after the Minsk rally. Later that evening, it was reported that former Prime Minister of Belarus, Syarhey Rumas, who was dismissed by Lukashenko in June 2020, had posted a message of support for the anti-Lukashenko protesters on his Instagram account. Earlier, Rumas's wife had published a photograph of herself and Rumas on the roof of a building overlooking the protests and a message of support.
Lukashenko had announced that an air assault brigade would hold week-long unscheduled maneuvers starting 17 August in western Belarus, before announcing that NATO forces were "at the gates" and threatening the country, prompting President Putin to offer military assistance, opening a possibility of Belarus being taken over through annexation or as a "union state". In the early morning of 17 August, several military trucks carrying unmarked soldiers were spotted heading towards Minsk on the M1 "Belarus" highway in Russia.
On 17 August, Lukashenko was booed and shouted at when he gave a speech at the Minsk wheel tractor plant. He told the audience they would have to kill him to get another election. Meanwhile, a broadcast by the state TV showed empty news desks as TV presenters had walked out on strike. Members of the European Parliament issued a joint statement stating that they did not recognize Alexander Lukashenko as the president of Belarus and considered him a persona non grata in the European Union. The joint statement also proclaimed that reliable information showed that Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya won the presidential election.
On the same day, Tsikhanouskaya released a video in which she stated that she was ready to lead a transitional government and organize a new, free, and fair presidential election. Lukashenko conceded that an early presidential election could be held if a new constitution is adopted, after it has been drafted and a referendum is held and passed.
Pavel Latushko, director of the Yanka Kupala National Theatre in Minsk and minister of culture, who had previously condemned the violence and cautiously supported the protests, was fired by the Belarusian Ministry of Culture.Латушко уволен с поста директора Купаловского . Tut.by. 17 August 2020.