MINSK, Belarus (AP) — The parliament of Belarus has set the next presidential election for Oct. 11, about a month earlier than originally planned.
Today’s decision intensified a debate among opposition parties on whether to put forward candidates for an election all but certain to be won by Alexander Lukashenko, who has ruled the former Soviet republic with an iron grip since 1994.
After Lukashenko won a fourth term in 2010 with what election officials said was 80 percent of the vote, mass protests broke out on the streets of Minsk, the capital. They were violently broken up by police, who arrested hundreds of protesters and seven of the nine candidates that ran against Lukashenko. Two of the candidates were later sent to prison, where one still remains.
The Times Record Sustaining Sponsor
We believe a community must be informed to thrive. bowdoin.edu
Comments are not available on this story. Read more about why we allow commenting on some stories and not on others.
We believe it's important to offer commenting on certain stories as a benefit to our readers. At its best, our comments sections can be a productive platform for readers to engage with our journalism, offer thoughts on coverage and issues, and drive conversation in a respectful, solutions-based way. It's a form of open discourse that can be useful to our community, public officials, journalists and others.
We do not enable comments on everything — exceptions include most crime stories, and coverage involving personal tragedy or sensitive issues that invite personal attacks instead of thoughtful discussion.
You can read more here about our commenting policy and terms of use. More information is also found on our FAQs.
Show less