The Belarusian opposition has announced the creation of “people’s embassies” to defend its interests and counter the propaganda of the Belarusian state in 24 countries, European Union member states, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and Brazil.
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The spokesman for the investigative committee, Siarhei Kabakovich, claimed that participants in the efforts to create “pseudo-embassies” tried to conduct “information campaigns aimed at discrediting our country” and hinder Belarusian diplomats’ contacts with public and foreign organizations, undermining the country’s credibility and security.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko speaks at an assembly of the Supreme Council of the State of the Union with Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg, Russia, Monday, Jan. 29, 2024. (Pavel Bednyakov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, file)
The investigative committee said more than 100 Belarusians accused of participating in the effort could be charged with involvement in “extremist activities” punishable by criminal penalties of up to seven years and confiscation of their property.
The human rights organization Viasna said earlier this month that at least another 4,690 people had been convicted on political grounds since the August 2020 presidential election that gave Lukashenko a fifth term and fueled widespread protests.
The government responded with repressive measures. More than 35,000 more people were arrested, thousands were beaten by police while in detention, and dozens of non-governmental organizations and independent media outlets were shut down.
There have been more than 1,400 political prisoners in Belarus lately, said Viasna founder and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski.
Exiled Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who left the country under government pressure after challenging Lukashenko in the 2020 election, said the most recent raids on opposition activists reflected Lukashenko’s fear.
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“The new wave of studies and repression in Belarus shows that Lukashenko is frightened by the solidarity presented to us by the leaders and politicians of democratic nations around the world,” Tsikhanouskaya told The Associated Press. “Searches, arrests and trials continue in Belarus, yet thousands of Belarusians have fled abroad, and each of them could become an ‘ambassador of the people’ protecting the country’s democratic future. “