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Opposition figures, who have led demonstrations against
President Alexander Lukashenko since an election they deemed
rigged in August last year, have recently called on the public
to ramp up protests once again, after a two-month lull.
The Minsk Investigative Committee warned that protesters could
face criminal charges, and said it had opened a case against the
authors of posts on the Telegram messenger app that called for
people to go out on the streets.
Protests were expected to start again in earnest on Saturday
afternoon, though some detentions had already taken place in the
morning, according to videos shared on Belarus opposition media
channels.
Dozens were detained on Thursday during a relatively minor
protest, coordinated to coincide with 'Freedom Day', an
unofficial anniversary marking Belarus' 1918 declaration of
independence from Russia, a period that proved short-lived.
Over 34,000 people have been detained since the start of regular
demonstrations in August last year, which attracted hundreds of
thousands of people and formed the biggest challenge so far to
Lukashenko's nearly 27-year-rule.
Lukashenko denies electoral fraud and has accused the West of
sponsoring the protests.
On Friday, Belarus was disqualified from the Eurovision Song
Contest after lyrics of submitted songs were deemed to be
mocking of anti-government protests.
(Writing by Polina Ivanova; Editing by Clelia Oziel)
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