On Sunday, September 13, the Belarusian authorities detained hundreds of people in the capital, Minsk, who went to protest against the authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko. People took to the streets despite yesterday’s mass arrests during the women’s march. Demonstrations and arrests have also taken place in other major Belarusian cities today.
Hundreds of people detained in MinskUldis Ķezberis00:00 / 00:00
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It is already common for large-scale peaceful demonstrations to take place in the center of Minsk every Sunday, with participants protesting against the falsification of the results of the presidential elections in Belarus on 9 August and demanding the resignation of the current head of state, Alexander Lukashenko. The enthusiasm of the population has not been dampened by the brutal attempts of the authorities to suppress the protest movement.
Even today, thousands of people from different parts of Minsk went to the city center. After that, they went together in the direction of Lukashenko’s residence – the Independence Palace, the news portal “Tut.by” reports.
Since the morning, there have been reports that a large number of security guards and military equipment are stationed in the center of Minsk. Around noon, when many protesters left home, OMON special forces blocked the main streets and began detaining people.
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The Belarusian Interior Ministry said about 250 people had been detained by 3 p.m. The ministry said all detainees were found to have banned white-red-white national flags and other unauthorized symbols.
The human rights organization Visna also reported that at least 250 people had been detained during the protests.
Despite security efforts to deter people, most protesters managed to get to the city center. Authorities say no more than 3,000 people are taking part in the demonstration, but images posted on social media show that the actual number of participants is many times higher. It should be recalled that about 200 thousand people took part in the protest march last Sunday.
During the protests in the center of Minsk, the operation of the mobile Internet was disrupted, making it difficult for people to communicate and find out the news. One of the largest mobile operators in the country, A1, explained to the news portal Tut.by that the company had reduced the speed of mobile internet at the request of the authorities. Also during previous protests in Minsk, telephone communications were disrupted and mobile internet did not work.
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Protests against the Lukashenko regime are also taking place in Vitebsk, Brest, Grodno and Mogilev. Dozens of demonstrators have also been detained by security guards in these cities.
Yesterday, another women’s march took place in Minsk, the participants of which demanded the release of Maria Kolesnikov, a member of the presidium of the opposition Coordination Council. She has been in prison since Monday. About 70 people were detained by security authorities during the demonstration.
More than 10,000 people have been detained in Belarus since the protests began on August 9, Belsat reports. Many detainees have asked the Committee of Inquiry to investigate the actions of the security guards, but so far no criminal proceedings have been instituted.
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