Belarus raids activists across country in coordinated crackdown

Since the election, more than 30,000 protesters have been arrested

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has cracked down on almost all forms of opposition (via REUTERS)

Belarusian authorities raided the homes and offices of NGOs and public figures on Wednesday, arresting dozens and seizing equipment, in what appeared to be a coordinated strike against civil society by the country’s self-declared president, Alexander Lukashenko.

Early morning police raids took in addresses across the whole country — from Brest to Homel. Security officers were seen at the offices of the Belarusian Association of Journalists, the Belarusian Helsinki Committee, the Beroc think tank, Belarus Popular Front party, Human Constanta and Viasna-96 among others.

Colleagues have reported that Viasna’s veteran leader Ales Bialiatski, who cuts a legendary figure in the activist community, remains uncontactable.

Working in challenging circumstances, Mr Bialatski has been at the forefront of efforts to support the victims of political violence. According to Viasna’s figures, 555 political prisoners remain in Mr Lukashenko’s prisons.

Following Mr Lukashenko’s likely landslide loss at last August’s presidential elections, the 27-year ruler has cracked down on almost all forms of opposition, unleashing merciless violence against his detractors.

In the course of eleven months, more than 30,000 protesters have been arrested, hundreds tortured, and at least seven killed. In May, he commandeered a Ryanair passenger jet to secure the arrest of Roman Protasevich, a journalist and long-time detractor flying on board.

Europe introduced unusually strong sanctions in response to that incident, prohibiting a large part of Belarus’ critical potash and oil exports.

The erratic leader has shown little sign of backing down to the increasing pressure.

Almost immediately, he responded by stepping up a domestic crackdown, raiding the offices of most independent media outlets. Abroad, he unleashed a ‘migrant war’ on Lithuania, and has hinted he might be inclined to unleash a supply of narcotics westwards too.

A wily operator and survivor by nature, Mr Lukashenko’s future in large part now depends on the plans of his counterpart in the Kremlin. On Tuesday, the Belarusian was in St Petersburg for five hours of negotiations with Vladimir Putin on new loans and a common response to sanctions.

Guarantees given by Mr Putin at the height of protests in late August were what allowed the Belarusian leader to hang on.

The growing frequency of meetings would appear to demonstrate Mr Lukashenko accepts that — and that Mr Putin is pushing for a return on that investment.