Belarus: mechanisms of a popular revolt

Key points by Ioanna Georgia Eskiadi

In this webinar we discussed the situation in Belarus, the different campaigns, the mobilization of people, and the need for change.

• Mobilization of civil society.
• Ineffective response to the pandemic by government.
• Three women are the symbols of the opposition with a different political background.
• Use of social media as tool for mobilization and people self-organize.
• Different groups of people with different backgrounds are gathered for the same purpose: change.
• Attacks on the opposition, especially to activists and journalists.
• Prohibition of election polls.
• More protests have brought more violence from the government.
• Change of soft diplomacy of West, to be proactive.
• International community should witness.

In Belarus, Alexander Lukashenka is facing the most severe threat to his regime since he took power in 1994. Alexander Lukashenka managed to consolidate the whole regime, he destroyed and eliminated the division of power, and he managed to have full control of all local administration. The government’s inept response to the coronavirus pandemic has made the president vulnerable. Multiple opposition candidates, bloggers, and digital influencers have already been arrested and face jail sentences for political activity. People who support the opposition are not just regular activists or journalists, they are young people, older people, even those who voted for Lukashenka before. Thousands took to the streets to protest the regime and the unfair candidate registration process. Attacks are done on the opposition, journalists targeted are followed by the police.

“They want to have the elections in full darkness, which is why local observers are eliminated. We have more than 30 political prisoners, many of them are activists, journalists, Youtubers, vloggers,” says Franak Viacorka from Digital Communication Network & Consortium BNR100, Belarus.

Three women are the major opposition forces and are gaining popularity worldwide, as they became the leaders of the movement, the major orders of the protests in a patriarchic society. “In Belarus, we have three women who want to bring the change,” says Natalia Kaliada, director of Creative Politics Hub from the UK. Social media in contrast with traditional media, which doesn’t have a good reputation in Belarus, are gaining more and more prominence. People self-organize through Youtube and Instagram and coordinate activities via Telegram. The rise of civil society in Belarus can be compared to the freedom and anti-communist movements in the late 1980s. However, what makes this moment in organizing different is the availability of digital communication technology and its power in mobilizing and spreading information. We need to get rid of the root of the problem, Russia, and the dictatorship in Belarus has threatened the rest of Europe. The soft diplomacy the west continues to use needs to change and be proactive, to stop what is happening in Belarus, but the west prefers to not be proactive.

“Soft diplomacy doesn’t work with dictatorship and unfortunately the world continues to ignore this,” says Natalia Kaliada.

Belarusian authorities have a much more conservative reaction to the crowd by using preventive arrests, while they want to keep elections as low profile as possible. But the international community should witness that there is so much to show by having simple messages that are very strong and efficient. At the same time, the movement becomes unstoppable, social media are not controlled by governments, and the young generation is active; these characteristics led to the success of the movement until now. “It’s important to see how Russia will react; Russia will not probably do much but is threatened by the unpredictability of the future if the regime will change,” says David Marples, Professor in University of Alberta in Canada.

Speakers:
David Marples is Professor in University of Alberta in Canada.
Irena Lasota is the President and co-director of the Institute for Democracy in Eastern Europe in USA.

Vytis Jurkonis is Project Director of Freedom House in Lithuania.

Natalia Kaliada is the Director of Creative Politics Hub and co-Founder of Belarus Free Theatre. She is a diplomat, historian, and writer in U.K.

Franak Viacorka is on Digital Communication Network and Consortium BNR100 from Belarus.

This event is co-organized by Digital Communication Network SouthEast Europe Hub (DCN SEE) and World Learning and is part of DCNSEE’s Ideas in Action — Digital Engagement, a series of virtual events launched in the context of the COVID-19 crisis. DCNSEE is supported by the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Citizen Exchanges.

This global event was designed and arranged with support from the South-Central Asia Alumni Network of the State Department exchange program Professional Fellows, implemented by World Learning.

DCN SOUTHEAST EUROPE HUB is a consortium of Aristotle University, Digital Communication Network, nonprofits, public and private organizations and companies involved in the fields of digital communication, social impact campaigns, technology, and innovation. It is a unique, interdisciplinary coalition tapping into the best talent and resources across Europe.