Belarus opposition protests begin amid heavy police presence

Belarus’s embattled government vowed to take control of national monuments to protect them from protesters, as opposition demonstrators gathered in Minsk on Sunday.

“We are strictly warning: In case of disruption of the order and peace in these places — you will have to deal not with the police, but with the Army,” the Ministry of Defense said in a statement.

There was a strong security force presence in the capital city as opposition protesters began arriving at Independence Square, with protesters warned over a loudspeaker to disperse and stop violating public order laws.

It has been two weeks since a contested presidential election saw Alexander Lukashenko retain his 26-year grip on power, sparking mass opposition protests across the country.

Independent observers criticized the country’s August 9 poll for being neither free nor fair. And much of the international community has expressed solidarity with the protesters, piling pressure on Lukashenko to give in to calls for another vote.

But the President has doubled down, even insisting that there won’t be new elections “until you kill me.” Last Sunday, Lukashenko told a rally in central Minsk that Belarus was being threatened by “foreign forces.”

The United Nations said Friday it was “disturbed” that reportedly no action had been taken to investigate reports of “large-scale torture and ill-treatment” of people and children arrested in connection with the protests.

Source: cnn.com

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