Alexander Lukashenko, “Europe’s last dictator,” has brutally suppressed mass protests sparked by civil unrest over Belarus’s presidential election in August. Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus with an iron fist since 1994, has managed to maintain his grip on power by rigging elections for more than two decades. No Belarusian presidential election since 1994 has been declared free or fair by international election observers. With state-sponsored media, the Belarusian KGB and Vladimir Putin at his side, the Belarusian authoritarian has managed to effectively fight back against internal and external opposition to his regime for years until now.
Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, a former English teacher now-turned Lukashenko’s largest political rival, addressed a crowd of her supporters, saying that she wants her “husband and children back” and would much rather “fry (her) cutlets” instead of leading a major opposition movement. Tikhanovskaya’s husband, Sergei, was the original contender to oppose Lukashenko in the August election. A popular YouTube blogger and activist, he was barred from registering and as a candidate and was thrown in prison. After her husband’s arrest, Tikhanovskaya joined forces with Veronika Tsepkalo, the wife of another barred presidential candidate, Valery Tsepkalo and Maria Kolesnikova, former campaign manager to barred candidate Viktar Babaryka. Together, this powerful female trio has managed to ignite one of the most expansive protest movements against Lukashenko’s brutal regime.
Lukashenko’s misogyny was on full display during his campaign, saying that a female president like Tikhanovskaya “would collapse, poor thing.” Beyond his routine targeting of female pro-democracy activists, the Belarusian KGB went into overdrive to persecute anyone perceived as a political opponent leading up to the election, including journalists, monitors and foreign citizens. Lukashenko’s focus on eliminating his opposition has gone far beyond his attention to COVID-19, which he’s dismissed as “psychosis.” In accordance with his typical machismo, Lukashenko suggested that drinking vodka, riding tractors through fields and going to the sauna would be enough to counteract the deadly virus that has claimed over a million lives worldwide.
Despite losing the rigged election, and being forced to flee the country, Tikhanovskaya’s group of three has managed to continue to fuel the mass protests for democracy and human rights. Following the elections, multiple state TV personalities, bastions for the preservation of Lukashenko’s rule, resigned and joined the anti-government protests. Students, doctors, the elderly and prominent athletes and actors have joined since the popular movement’s start more than 100 days ago.
Diana Pchelinkova, a young female activist from Minsk described the brutality she endured during pro-democracy protests to the BBC. As she fled from the police, she and other protesters ran into an apartment building, seeking shelter in an apartment: “I was the last one. I fell at the entrance. They hit my back with batons. We tried to shut the door but they pushed through.”
According to her account, officers stormed in the apartment Pchelinkova had taken shelter in and began beating the male protesters while the women screamed and begged for the police to spare them from detention.
Another female activist, Alesya, who frequently attends anti-government rallies, recounted her experience at a protest in early November. As crowds increased, stun grenades were unleashed on the peaceful protesters and police hit people with batons. “They attacked us again and again. It was awful. They ferociously beat people, twisted their arms and took us away,” Alesya said. Female leadership and widespread female participation in the protests aimed at ousting Lukashenko are not only eroding the old-guard Soviet-style institutions that have kept Lukashenko in power for decades but also the image of the traditionally ultra-macho authoritarian leader.
Tikhanovskaya’s rise along with Tsepkalo and Kolesnikova’s feminist leadership has effectively destroyed one of Europe’s last strongmen, as Lukashenko continues to frantically suppress his opposition and likely fears retribution from Vladimir Putin in a similar style to Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014. Three women have brought one strong man down to his knees, and if they succeed, Tikhanovskaya, the Belarussian “Joan of Arc,” will radically change the landscape of the Soviet-style nation, despite having to tackle undoubtedly difficult challenges for a former teacher and housewife, including rampant corruption, extreme poverty and COVID-19.
Kareem Rifai can be reached at krifai@umich.edu.
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