On September 6, thousands of demonstrators marched to the outskirts of the presidential residence in the capital of Belarus.
The demonstrators are calling for the country's authoritarian leader to resign to protests against President Alexander Lukashenko.
The fifth week of protest
The protests took place in major cities throughout Belarus, according to Interior Ministry spokeswoman Olga Chemodanova.
The crowd sizes for the protests were not reported immediately, but the head of the Viasna human rights organization, Ales Bialiatski, said that it attracted more than 100,000 people, according to New York Post.
On August 9, the protests began after the presidential vote. According to election officials, it gave Lukashenko a sixth term in office with 80% support.
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However, protesters say that the results were rigged and some protesters explained to Associated Press journalists how the fraud took place in their respective districts. Lukashenko has ruled the country since 1994 with an iron first, repressing press freedom and dissent.
During the first days of protests, the police cracked down on demonstrators and arrested 7,000 people and beating hundreds.
Even though the police have scaled back, detentions continue. Viasna reported that scores of people were arrested in Grodno and Minks on September 6.
On the same day, police and army troops blocked off the centre of Minks. But that did not stop the demonstrators, they marched to the outskirts of the Palace of Independence, the working residence of the president. The grounds of the palace were blocked off by riot police holding water cannons and shields.
Maria Kolesnikova, a leader of the Coordination Council, said that the thousands of people couldn't be stopped by military equipment, propaganda, water cannons and arrests. She added that most Belarusians want a peaceful change of power and that they will not get tired of demanding it.
The Coordination Council was set up by the opposition to try to arrange a dialogue with the president about a transition of power. The president is now 66-years-old.
Won't back down
Despite the efforts, Lukashenko has rejected any discussion with the council, and some of its top members were arrested and are now in jail. One of them, Olga Kovalova, was expelled from the country and driven to Poland by police.
Although there seems to be no progress between the president and the opposition, the protesters are determined and stated that they would not tire. Some of the placards that they carried showed a sense of humour.
One placard read "Lukashenka, start building a house near Yanukovych," referring to former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych who fled to Russia in 2014 after months of protests.
Another placard read "The collective farm went bankrupt," referring to Lukashenko's former position as a collective farm director and his retention of state-controlled Soviet-style economy for Belarus, which is an Eastern European nation of 9,5 million.
Authorities also have revoked the accreditation of many journalists in Belarus and deported some foreign journalists, including two Moscow-based Associated Press journalists.
Lukashenko is dubbed "Europe's last dictator". In August 2020, he was met with protesters when he visited a tractor factory, instead of cheers he was greeted with chants telling him to "go away", according to The New York Times.
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