Unidentified people yesterday detained Belarusian protest leader Maria Kolesnikova in central Minsk and drove her off in a minivan, the Belarusian Tut.By media outlet cited a witness as saying.
Kolesnikova is the last of three female politicians left inside Belarus who joined forces before an Aug. 9 presidential election to try to challenge Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, who has been in power since 1994.
A vocal critic of Lukashenko, she has played an important role in the country’s post-election political crisis which has seen weeks of mass protests and strikes by people who accuse Lukashenko of rigging his own re-election.
Photo: AP
Kolesnikova’s allies yesterday said that they were checking the report of her detention.
Police in Minsk were cited by Russia’s Interfax news agency as saying that they had not detained her.
Before the election, Kolesnikova had joined forces with opposition presidential candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya who later fled to Lithuania, and with Veronika Tsepkalo, who has also since left the country.
Another leading activist, Olga Kovalkova, arrived in Poland on Saturday, saying she had been told she would face arrest if she stayed in Belarus.
Kolesnikova’s abduction, if confirmed, comes as Belarusian authorities appear to be stepping up their efforts to try to break protesters’ momentum.
On Sunday, more than 100,000 people filled Minsk’s Independence Avenue calling for Lukashenko to step down. There were similar marches in other cities, including Brest, Vitebsk and Grodno.
Belarusian authorities sent troops, water cannons, armored personnel carriers and armored reconnaissance vehicles into central Minsk.
Riot police sealed off the center of the city with barriers, and officers wearing balaclavas arrested and beat several male demonstrators and dragged them into vans. At least one person was taken away in an ambulance.
“In total 633 people were detained in the republic for violations of legislation on mass events,” Belarusian Ministry of Internal Affairs spokeswoman Olga Chemodanova said, adding that 363 had been sent to detention centers pending court hearings.
As demonstrators gradually dispersed on Sunday evening, local media reported that hooded men in civilian clothes with batons were chasing and beating demonstrators.
Lukashenko’s security forces have detained thousands of protesters, many of whom accused police of beatings and torture. Several people have died during the crackdown.
However, there were few indications that the regime’s heavy-handed tactics are working. Protests have gone on for nearly a month and show no sign of fizzling out.
“The majority don’t believe in those in power. They reject the result of the election. A lot of people thought the protests would stop in the first week. They didn’t,” said Barys Goretsky of Belarus’ journalism association.
“We are optimistic. We will keep going,” he added.
Goretksy said that low-level protests are happening every day, with residents gathering in courtyards and apartment block buildings to express their anger at Lukashenko.
The regime was still targeting reporters, with three arrested on Saturday; one was still in jail, he said.
Those who attended Sunday’s march waved red and white flags, a symbol of opposition to Lukashenko.
They chanted: “Lukashenko, to the police van,” “Lukashenko, to the prison toilet,” “Tribunal” and “This is our city.”
Meanwhile, the EU aims to impose economic sanctions on 31 senior Belarusian officials including the Belarusian minister of internal affairs by the middle of this month, three EU diplomats said.
“We initially agreed on 14 names, but many states felt that was not sufficient. We have now reached consensus on another 17,” one EU diplomat said. “These are senior officials responsible for the election, for violence and for the crackdown.”
Additional reporting by AFP
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