TOUGH OPPOSITION
Belarus election results: Why are there protests and who is President Alexander Lukashenko?
PROTESTS have erupted in several cities in Belarus after a presidential vote that the opposition says was rigged.
President Alexander Lukashenko has been re-elected for a sixth consecutive term in an election that saw his toughest opposition challenge in years.
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Who won the Belarus election?
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko won a landslide re-election victory, the central election commission said on Monday, August 10.
Figures released by the election commission gave Lukashenko 80 per cent of the vote.
Svetlana Tikhanouskaya, a former English teacher who stood as Lukashenko's main rival, won 9.9 per cent of the vote, the data showed.
Tikhanouskaya entered the race in Belarus after her husband, an anti-government blogger who intended to run, was jailed.
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Her rallies have drawn some of the biggest crowds since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, .
The lead-up to the election saw a crackdown on activists and journalists amid the country's biggest opposition demonstrations in years.
After voting on Sunday, August 9, Mr Lukashenko said he did not see Ms Tikhanouskaya as a threat, and denied imposing repressive measures on the opposition.
Meanwhile, Ms Tikhanouskaya said she did not believe the polls, saying: "I will believe with my own eyes. The majority was for us."
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Why are there protests?
There is widespread suspicion that the election was not fair, with two opposition candidates denied places on the ballot before one of them was jailed and the other fled to Russia, reports.
Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, 37, entered in place of her jailed husband and went on to lead large opposition rallies.
The protests began after an official exit poll showed that Lukashenko won Sunday's presidential election with 79.7% of the vote, securing a sixth term in office.
Squares and streets in the capital Minsk were sealed off by police as Mr Lukashenko vowed that the situation would remain "under control", reports.
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There have been clashes between police and thousands of protesters who said the vote was rigged.
At least one person was killed after being knocked over by a police van and dozens were injured in the clashes that began after polling stations closed on Sunday, August 9, a representative of the rights group Spring 96 told Reuters.
Human rights groups say more than 1,300 people were detained in the crackdown ahead of the election, including independent election observers and members of Tikhanouskaya's campaign team.
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Some protesters built barricades with rubbish bins, news agency reported.
Police fired water cannon, tear gas and stun grenades to disperse the protesters.
Interior Ministry spokeswoman Olga Chemodanova said that police efforts to restore order were continuing overnight, according to .
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Who is President Alexander Lukashenko?
Alexander Lukashenko, 65, has been Belarus' president since 1994 and has just been re-elected to serve a sixth term.
Sometimes referred to as Europe's last dictator, President Lukashenko has dismissed his opposition candidate Ms Tikhanovskaya as a "poor little girl", manipulated by foreign "puppet masters".
A former Soviet collective farm manager, Lukashenko has been the country's first and only president since independence was won in 1990.
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However, he now faces the biggest challenge in years to keep his grip on power with some voters believing strongly that it is time he stood down.
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He has cast himself as a guarantor of stability but has battled a wave of anger over his handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, the economy and his human rights record.
Lukashenko has been widely condemned for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic which he said could be treated with saunas and vodka.
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