“The fate of Ukraine and the fate of Belarus are interconnected,” says Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, the opposition leader whose victory in the 2020 election in Belarus was stolen out from under her by strongman Alexander Lukashenko. She is so right. Mr. Lukashenko has now become a satrap of Russian President Vladimir Putin, permitting Russian troops to use Belarus as a launchpad for the war against Ukraine. Democracy in both Belarus and Ukraine must be saved from being trampled by the heavy boots of Mr. Putin and Mr. Lukashenko.
Why Belarus matters: Like Ukraine, democracy is at stake
While the citizens and military of Ukraine are in an existential battle for survival, Ms. Tikhanovskaya reminded us last week that the people of Belarus, while not at war, are in an equally consequential struggle to throw off the Lukashenko dictatorship. Belarusian partisans have sabotaged shipment of Russian war materiel to Ukraine. A clandestine network destroyed train control components, while cyber partisans disrupted rail software. Huge fines and prison terms have been imposed on those who protest in Belarus, including journalists, trade union leaders, students, professors and others. Channels on Telegram, the social media platform that has proved critical to the Belarus democracy movement, are criminalized as “extremist” and “terrorist” by the government, leading to penalties for users who post on them. The lower house of parliament approved legislation last week calling for the death penalty for attempted acts of “terrorism.” According to the human rights group Viasna, there are 1,166 political prisoners held by Lukashenko’s government, including Ms. Tikhanovskaya’s husband, Sergei, and one of her running mates, Maria Kolesnikova.
Under heavy pressure, the street demonstrations that broke out after the stolen 2020 election have dissipated, but an internal opposition persists, and the United States must continue to support it. Loopholes remain in the European and U.S. sanctions on Mr. Lukashenko’s government; they should be tightened with the same strength as those on Mr. Putin’s government. Sanctions on steel exports should be considered, along with restrictions on all state banks, oil products and a freeze on Belarusian foreign currency reserves.
Russia fired missiles at Ukraine from Belarus, launched command-and-control aircraft from there, and still has thousands of troops in Belarus. Mr. Lukashenko is an accomplice to Mr. Putin’s war, and should end up in the dock with him as a war criminal. That things might turn that way has made Mr. Lukashenko uncomfortable, and his government has tried to smooth things over with Europe. “We categorically reject any insinuations about Belarus somehow being involved in the hostilities in Ukraine,” wrote foreign minister Vladimir Makei on April 6 in a letter to some counterparts in the European Union. Ms. Tikhanovskya told us Mr. Lukashenko “wants to change from arsonist to firefighter.” He can’t get away with it.
Ukraine is fighting for its future as a democracy, but there is also a struggle for liberty going on in Belarus and Russia. Such inspired leaders as Ms. Tikhanovskaya, President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, and jailed opposition figures Alexei Navalny and Vladimir Kara-Murza in Russia give us reason to hope that democracy will prevail. They deserve the world’s support.
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Source: WP
