Crisis in Belarus: new march of women in Minsk, hundreds of arrests

Belarusian riot forces arrested hundreds of people on Saturday during a women's march in Minsk against President Alexander Lukashenko.

About two thousand women were participating in the demonstration, waving the white and red flag of the opposition, when members of the riot police as well as police officers in uniform but also in civilian clothes made multiple arrests.

Hundreds of protesters were quickly dragged into the vehicles.

Tikhanovskaya proud of “courageous women of Belarus”

The rally was the latest in a series of women's mobilizations in Belarus to demand the departure of Mr. Lukashenko, in power for 26 years, after his re-election, which was deemed fraudulent last month.

Tut.By via REUTERS  

Before the demonstration, the leader of the opposition Svetlana Tikhanovskaïa, who had to take refuge in Lithuania, praised the "courageous women of Belarus".

"They are demonstrating despite permanent threats and pressure," she said in a statement.

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One of the placards held up by the demonstrators proclaimed: "Our protest has a woman's face", in reference to the title of a work by Nobel laureate for literature Svetlana Aleksievich, which supported the cause of the opposition, "The war does not have a woman's face ”.

Trapped women are singing Kupalinka - a Belarusian folk song.

Men in black don't let them out until more prison vans arrive.

I don't want to sound dramatic but all these detentions of women have a very strong 1941 vibe.

pic.twitter.com/evQW52YtrF

- Tadeusz Giczan (@TadeuszGiczan) September 19, 2020

Among the women arrested was Nina Baguinskaya, 73, one of the best-known activists in the protest movement against Alexander Lukashenko.

She was then released from a police station.

Women managed to escape and take refuge in a nail salon, the Tut.by news site reported.

New Sunday events

Ambulances were also on site to take care of people injured or who felt ill during the arrests.

Human rights organization Viasna published the names of 217 women arrested in Minsk online, noting that the list was being updated.

Police did not provide the number of people arrested.

The opposition is due to lead new massive protests on Sunday.

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The women's protests began in Belarus after those arrested during the protest against the election of Lukashenko suffered extreme violence in detention.

Protesters dressed in white began forming human chains and marching in Minsk and other cities in peaceful marches initially tolerated by police.

Last weekend, police had already arrested dozens of participants in a women's demonstration.