All news

Protesters being released from Belarus detention facilities

It is not yet clear what factors are behind this move

MINSK, August 13./TASS/. Protesters detained in Belarus after the presidential election are being released from remand centers, according to the list uploaded to the Telegram channel of the Viasna Human Rights Center, as well as to reports from the people set free earlier.

Over 150 people left the detention facility in Zhodino, 60 kilometers from Minsk, during the night, and tens of people were released in Minsk. Volunteers meet them to take home and render other assistance. Some protesters have also been set free in other cities. Human rights activists say that it is not yet clear whether this is because the Belarusian detention facilities are overcrowded, or there are other factors behind. The Interior Ministry is not commenting on the situation.

It has also been reported that a volunteer center has been set up in Minsk to help lawyers provide legal assistance to all Belarusian citizens who need it.

An entrepreneur, who took part in protests in Minsk on August 11 and was released, has told TASS that the cells of the detention center he was an inmate of are overcrowded two or three times beyond their capacity. He said inmates were treated harshly and no parcels were accepted. According to eyewitnesses, three prison buses with released protesters have been seen leaving the Okrestina detention facility in Minsk.

Belarus held the presidential election on August 9. Preliminary results show incumbent President Alexander Lukashenko securing his reelection with 80.08% of the vote, while his main rival Svetlana Tikhanovskaya received 10.09%

After exit poll results were revealed late on August 9, suggesting Lukashenko’s landslide victory, many cities and towns across the country saw mass protests that in some cases turned into clashes with the police. Protests have continued since then. The national Interior Ministry said some 6,000 people had been detained and dozens of police officers and protesters were injured. Tikhanovskaya challenged the results, refused to recognize them and said that she believes herself to be the elected president. She also filed a complaint with the national election commission. Tikhanovskaya then left the country and is now in Lithuania.