The Interior Ministry in Belarus acknowledged on Tuesday that police were quitting their posts in response to calls from the political opposition, ...
MINSK: The nascent political opposition in Belarus set up a council inside the country on Tuesday, a move President Alexander Lukashenko denounced as an attempt to seize power 10 days after an election that has triggered mass demonstrations.
"We are operating solely through legal means," Kovalkova said."The situation is critical. The authorities have no choice but to come to dialogue. The situation will only get worse." There have been increasing signs that the burly former Soviet collective farm boss is losing his grip on the country he has ruled for 26 years, with workers going on strike at state factories long seen as bastions of his support.
Earlier on Tuesday, Lukashenko awarded medals"for impeccable service" to law enforcement officials who have helped crack down on protesters. The entire troupe of actors resigned en masse on Tuesday in solidarity at Latushko's Janka Kupala National Theatre, where Culture Minister Yuri Bondar met them on stage. One by one, the actors slammed down a resignation letter and shouted"go away". Hundreds of protesters outside cheered as the actors emerged.
For his part, Lukashenko says the protests are being stirred up from abroad. The official Belta news agency released a video calling protesters"bought-and-sold scum, prepared to sell their own mothers for $20". Lukashenko told his Security Council that the army had gone on full alert at the western borders, describing"internal problems" as part of an external threat.
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