Belarusian President, Alexander Lukashenko has been in power for 26 years and has commonly been described as ‘Europe’s last dictator’. Lukashenko has earned this title through his repeated fiddling in elections since his inauguration in 1994 which has seen him consistently secure 80% majorities. His handling of the COVID-19 crisis has attracted heavy criticism from across the world, as he claimed other countries were suffering from ‘coronapsychosis’ and refused to follow WHO advice; keeping businesses open and advising his citizens to ‘drink vodka, have saunas and drive tractors to keep the virus at bay’. However, Lukashenko’s future has become somewhat uncertain, as he is threatened with competing a legitimate election on the 9th of August.

It seems clear that a genuine democratic election would see the end of Lukashenko’s reign as discontent towards his leadership intensifies with his faltering economy, shameful response to coronavirus and the Belarusian citizens increasing exposure to social media of which is entirely disapproving of Lukashenko’s rule. In response to the threat of a legitimate election, Lukashenko has commenced an indiscreet purging of all of his key electoral rivals to ensure he can continue to preserve his kleptocratic regime. Viktor Babariko was detained on July 18th over allegations of tax evasion and money laundering and another political competitor, Sergei Tikhanovsky has also been jailed for purportedly interfering with the work of the Central Electoral Commission. More recently, Valery Tsepkalo, the country’s former ambassador to Washington and would-be Belarusian presidential candidate has fled to Moscow with his two sons after being barred from candidacy in the upcoming election. Tsepkalo has said his escape to Moscow came after his friends in law enforcement informed him that a “three-letter” agency was looking for him to leave the country (referring to the KGB).

However, an exciting, all-woman triumvirate has just emerged in opposition to Lukashenko’s campaign. The trio is headed by Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, the wife of the jailed, former competitor Sergei Tikhanovsky whose popularity has grown colossally in recent months following her courageous speeches on her campaign across the country. Tikhanovskaya has evidently observed the consequences of being a presidential candidate and thus taken safe precautions by taking her children out of the country for their own safety. Tikhanovskaya has now joined forces with Maria Kolesnikova and Veronika Tsepkalo as they merge their respective campaigns together in order to take on Lukashenko.

Despite a sharp display of popularity for the Tikhanovskaya campaign and the apparent disgust at Lukashenko’s corrupt regime, there are still significant fears that Lukashenko will abuse his power to influence the electoral authorities in order to secure his sixth term in office.

by Oliver Watt

The End For Europe's Last Dictator?