“The mood is not the same”

Abstract

Since the electoral committee claimed that the incumbent Aliaksandr Lukashenka had won the presidential election in Belarus on 9th August 2020, hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets in protest, at first against the falsification of the election, and then against arrests and the excessive use of force by the police. Unlike on former occasions, the protests are not limited to the capital, Minsk, and have attracted broad sections of the population. The protest movement captures people’s imagination through its creativity and vitality. However, it is unclear whether it will ultimately succeed. The regime is attempting to secure its position using violence and force. Yet the protest movement, with its new self-assurance, highly imaginative ideas and use of non-violent partisan tactics, will play an important role in paving the way to freedom for Belarusian society.