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Alexander Lukashenko: The Belarusian ruler is not recognized by the EU as president
Photo: Aleksey Nikolskyi / imago images / SNA
Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko can rule until 2035.
In the shadow of the war in neighboring Ukraine, the Belarusian dictator was assured of more power in a referendum on Sunday.
According to official information, the majority of citizens in the authoritarian country voted in favor of the constitutional amendments.
"65.16 percent of voters voted for changes to the constitution of the Republic of Belarus," announced the chairman of the Belarusian Central Election Commission, Igor Karpenko, according to Russian news agencies on Monday night.
Voter turnout was 78.63 percent.
The constitutional amendment allows Lukashenko, who has been in power since 1994, to have additional terms in office.
It also ties the former Soviet republic closely to Russia.
It provides for a two-term limit on the term of office – which, however, is not to come into force until the next presidential election.
This means that the 67-year-old Lukashenko could stand for two more elections and remain in power until 2035 if he wins the elections.
The constitutional amendment also provides for lifelong impunity for Lukashenko, who is accused of murder, torture and other most serious crimes against humanity.
Russian nuclear weapons could be stationed permanently in Belarus
In amending the constitution, Lukashenko is following the lead of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who held a referendum in 2020 that allowed him to remain in power until 2036.
The ruler in Minsk was able to count on Putin's help in crushing the mass protests after Lukashenko's controversial re-election in August 2020.
He used Belarus as a deployment area for his armed forces, which also attacked Ukraine from there on Thursday.
According to Lukashenko, the constitution of Belarus should also be changed so that Russian troops and nuclear weapons can be permanently stationed in the country in the future.
The opposition around Svetlana Tichanovskaya, who lives in exile, had declared the vote illegal because of the state's persecution of Lukashenko's critics.
According to human rights activists, hundreds were arrested on the fringes of the referendum.
The human rights group Wesna listed the names of more than 300 people arrested on Sunday evening.
The videos published by the human rights activists show how people were taken away by police officers and larger groups demonstrated.
asc/AFP
