Security officials stop Belarusian protests with preemptive arrests
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The protest rally, which was timed to coincide with the Freedom Day, did not take place; everyone was detained even before the rally began.
The Belarusian protest continued until spring, but the first mass rally in 2021 failed. The opposition announced the resumption of mass protests on March 27. But no protest was ever raised. Law enforcement officers detained about 250 people and said that the rallies did not take place at all.
Is this the final end of the Belarusian protest?
A day of love without will
Freedom Day in Belarus is an unofficial memorable day dedicated to the formation of the Belarusian People’s Republic, proclaimed in 1918 by a group of leaders of the national movement of Belarus. It existed as an independent state until 1919. The Belarusian authorities detain participants of rallies and rallies dedicated to Freedom Day almost every year.
Freedom Day was celebrated across the country on March 25th. During the celebration, the security forces detained almost 250 people, many were arrested. Several drivers who honked their horns in the streets that day were stripped of their driving license. The opposition called the Freedom Day celebration a preparation for the return of massive street protests. They were scheduled to start on March 27th.
But on March 27, the security forces again organized preemptive detentions and the protest never got together.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Belarus reported that there was not a single mass protest action on March 27. The press service of the department said that “protest activity is close to zero” – and “not a single unauthorized mass event has been recorded in all regions of the country.”
What’s next?
Opposition telegram channels admitted that “it was not possible to get together.” Now the opposition is calling for “decentralized actions” and “local marches” in the districts of Minsk amid a small number of demonstrators.
At the same time, in Belarus it is difficult to talk about the return of trust to the authorities and personally to Alexander Lukashenko. The brutal crackdown on street protests is unlikely to increase the love of state institutions.
Meanwhile, on March 31, its first meeting should be held by the Constitutional Commission – a body that must submit an updated version of the country’s main law by the end of August.
Further, the new constitution must be approved at a referendum – it is scheduled for the end of this year or the beginning of the new year, after which, as Lukashenka has promised many times, early parliamentary and presidential elections must be held in the country.
A week ago, Lukashenka announced his possible successors for the first time. The old man said that he was “starting to look closely” at potential candidates for the next presidential elections and named two who, in his opinion, would be “strong candidates.”
“The people have elected – everyone. My children after me will not be presidents,” he said.
“I have two of my people here, they can participate in the presidential elections, and at the same time they will be strong candidates. One general (Lukashenko’s assistant in the Grodno region, Yuri Karaev), the second governor (Grodno region, Vladimir Karanik). Young, new generation, intelligent . They know the value of this country, “Lukashenka said.
Yuri Karaev has been the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs since July 2019, and since October 29, 2020 he moved to his current position. It was he who headed the Interior Ministry during the most severe crackdown on protests. Karaev is included in the sanctions list of the EU, USA, UK and Canada.
Vladimir Karanik from July 2019 to the end of August 2020 was the Minister of Health, after which he became the chairman of the executive committee of the Grodno region. He is also under EU and US sanctions against officials of the Lukashenka regime for suppressing peaceful protests.
The opposition is also preparing for new elections. The election headquarters of Viktor Babaryk, a former contender for the 2020 presidential elections, who is still in prison, announced that he plans to create his own party by the end of spring.
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