On Sunday, tens of thousands of people took out protests in the Belarusian capital Minsk demanding authorities free political prisoners over the series of demonstrations that have been taking place in Belarus since the Aug. 9 election in which President Alexander Lukashenko claimed a landslide victory.
As the massive crowd of protesters waved white flags with a red stripe, the symbol of the Belarusian opposition, police turned water cannon on them.
Protesters walked to the beat of drums towards the Okrestina detention centre chanting “Let them out”.
Authorities temporarily slowed internet speed on Sunday leading to Belarusian protests using Telegram channels as a platform to communicate and distribute photos and videos from the protests.
Nexta, an opposition news channel, estimated that more than 100,000 people rallied in Minsk. However, official estimates are lower.
According to Interfax news agency, Belarusian police on Sunday detained scores of protesters and used water cannon installed on armoured police cars to disperse protesters.
After more than two months of uprisings post the August 9th presidential election, which oppositions say were rigged, and despite the fact that major opposition figures are in jail or in exile, Lukashenko has so far failed to stop the protests against his election win.
The uprising saw more than 13,000 people being arrested and some later freed.
The political crisis in Belarus has resulted in the European Union and the United States imposing sanctions on senior Belarusian officials, other than Lukashenko himself.
It is important to note that foreign observers have not judged an election to be free and fair in Belarus since 1995, and the run-up to the August vote saw authorities jail Lukashenko’s rivals and open criminal investigations on others who voiced opposition.
Lukashenko was inaugurated as president in late September without any prior announcements as he denied electoral fraud.
Lukashenko’s 2020 election opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanouskaya fled to Lithuania citing her children’s safety after the elections. Tikhanouskaya’s campaign rallies drew some of the biggest crowds since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.