People protesting in Minsk following the presidential elections. Image: Sergei Grits/AP/Press Association Images People protesting in Minsk following the presidential elections. Image: Sergei Grits/AP/Press Association Images OFTEN REFERRED TO as Europe’s ‘last dictatorship’, Belarus receives little global attention.
Yet these street protests have their roots in the complex politics of Belarus, which shares a 1,000km border with Russia and is a former member of the Soviet Union. More crucially, they have a basis in frustrations with Lukashenko, who has been president of the country since 1994.
“For years, a mix of genuine support among some and passivity among others provided the strongman with sufficient backing to continue to rule. That base is now crumbling,” Joerg Forbrig, an expert on eastern Europe, wrote in Politico last month ahead of the election. While having little political experience herself, Tsikhanouskaya’s election campaign channelled a sense of dissatisfaction with the current government.
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