Despite the government's hopes, protesters in Belarus aren't losing hope. When longtime President Alyaksandr Lukashenka attempted to secure a sixth consecutive term during elections on August 9, many citizens were enraged by plausible accusations of electoral fraud. Hundreds of thousands have taken to the country's streets and squares in its largest demonstrations since independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. They demand nothing less than the resignation of Lukashenka, who has denounced the protest movement with increasingly belligerent language. The police have responded to them with rubber bullets and mass arrests.
Women have stood at the forefront of these protests, and international media from The Washington Post to The Guardian have taken notice. The “women in white” stand off against riot police, brandishing bouquets of flowers, as they demand Lukashenka's resignation. These optics are doubtlessly linked to the role of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, Lukashenka's main challenger who officially received ten percent of the vote compared to Lukashenka's 90 percent. Tsikhanouskaya, who is married to a popular blogger whose own presidential bid was annulled, has since fled to neighbouring Lithuania, where she has established a coordination council for the Belarusian opposition and urges the world not to recognise the legitimacy of Lukashenka's rule.
This coordination council includes several public figures from Belarusian public life, many of whom still remain in Belarus and take part in the protests. One of them is the feminist and political philosopher Olga Shparaga, a professor at the European College of Liberal Arts in Belarus. I spoke to her about the role women are playing in Belarus’ crucial political moment, as well as her hopes for the future. The interview has been edited for style and brevity.
ME: What motivated you to get involved in this protest movement, and could you explain your role in the newly formed Coordinating Council of the Opposition?
OS: The first meeting of the Coordination Council was held on August 19, during which members of the presidium were elected and the trajectories of its work decided upon. However on August 20, the Belarusian General Prosecutor's Office announced that a criminal case had been opened in connection with the Coordination Council under Article 361 of the criminal code. It is not yet clear what exactly this means for the council, its members and participants. But alongside the fact that the council has only existed for a short period of time, this case is one reason why it is difficult for me to talk about my role or what exactly it will entail. I really hope that the council will continue its work, and that I will be involved in it.
What motivated me? I share with other Belarusians a deep dissatisfaction with the authoritarian regime. And the main message of this election campaign and these protests is very important to me: we can only change our country's situation together. This position was supported by the campaign headquarters of Viktor Babaryka (who has been in prison since June 18), then by the joint campaign headquarters of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, Maria Kalesnikova, and Veronika Tsepkalo. Today it is constantly stressed by Maria Kalesnikova [the only one of the latter three politicians still in Belarus – ed.]
In my understanding, actual rather than nominal democracy is associated with broad political participation, decentralisation, self-government at all levels, a conception of politicians and political leaders as “one of us”, and society as a network of horizontal cooperation. The way that the joint headquarters’ team managed to work together, for example through the Honest People community, confirms that “we are together” is not merely a slogan.
But this community is just one example. Such initiatives can now be found everywhere: an exhibition about this growth in collective self-awareness is currently being held next door to the Zerno cafe; my friends in Brest are working to create the Brest Public Council. Volunteers man the phones to provide psychological assistance to victims of violence and torture. This is an endless list of millions of people, they don't only need leaders and politicians, because they are themselves responsible actors, connected by networks of solidarity.
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