Mass anti-Lukashenko rally starts after Belarus police crackdown
Channel: Neptune Ursus Obmerga
Date: 2020-09-20

Tens of thousands of opposition supporters marched in the Belarusian capital of Minsk on Sunday despite authorities deploying a heavy police presence.

The protest came a day after officers detained hundreds of demonstrators at a women's march in the capital.

Military trucks and vehicles have rolled into the centre of Minsk as anonymous hackers leaked what they said was the personal data of more than 1,000 police officers in retaliation for a crackdown on anti-government demonstrations.

The protest movement calling for the departure of longtime President Alexander Lukashenko has been holding mass rallies every week since his disputed election win on August 9.

The latest opposition protests began at 11:00 GMT on Sunday with the opposition calling on social media for demonstrators to gather in central Minsk as well as in other cities.

People holding red-and-white protest flags gathered at the "March of Justice" that occupied the whole of a central avenue and walked towards the heavily guarded Palace of Independence, where Lukashenko has his offices.

They held placards with slogans such as "Cowards beat up women" and "Get out!".

Riot police in black balaclavas sporadically detained protesters carrying flags and signs at the start, while some people took shelter in a shopping mall and in a fast-food restaurant to escape arrest.

Belarusian opposition news sites posted video and photos of the military convoy driving into central Minsk and bringing rolls of barbed wire with it. 

The protest comes after riot police cracked down on peaceful female demonstrators on Saturday who had come out wearing shiny accessories for a so-called "Sparkly March". Police dragged protesters into vans, lifting some women off their feet and carried them.

Belarusian interior ministry spokeswoman Olga Chemodanova said on Sunday police detained 415 people in Minsk, and 15 in other cities, for breaking rules on mass demonstrations. She said 385 had been released.

Chemodanova warned Belarusians they could face criminal charges for organising such protests.

The number of detentions on Saturday was far higher than at a similar protest last week, prompting the opposition's Coordination Council to warn of a "new phase in the escalation of violence against peaceful protesters".

Among those held was one of the most prominent faces of the protest movement, 73-year-old activist Nina Baginskaya, although she was later released.