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On November 29, the March of Neighbours kicked off at 12.00 (local time) in Belarus.
For the second Sunday in a row, the protest rally is held in a decentralised format: its participants start to gather in their neighborhoods and then move to the places previously defined in local chats or decide on the spot where to march.
Nov 29. #NeighboursMarch in #Minsk: Protesters in offstreet yard. Video: #Belsat viewers More abt march: https://t.co/7qUz7IyCxH #Belarus #BelarusProtest pic.twitter.com/s2L1PEg8I9
— Belsat in English (@Belsat_Eng) November 29, 2020
On November 17, Alyaksandr Lukashenka instructed security agencies to ‘restore order’ in the capital and stamp out the protests. The people responded with changing Sunday marches’ format: a week ago, pro-government forces had more difficulty dispersing protesters who scattered all over the capital city.
In the run-up to the event, a number of metro stations were closed off in Minsk; mobile Internet was down. Security officers and special vehicles were pulled in to central squares of Belarusian cities and towns.
Nov 29. #Minsk‘ers chanting: ‘We believe, we can, we will win!’ in vicinity of Pushkinskaya metro station known as one of post-election protest spots #NeighboursMarch #Belarus #BelarusProtest Video: #Belsat viewers pic.twitter.com/uUv7BIp9Sd
— Belsat in English (@Belsat_Eng) November 29, 2020
Nov 29. #NeighboursMarch: Timelapse of column’s moving in #Minsk Source: TG minsk_new #BelarusProtest #Belarus pic.twitter.com/Vy75N1CiIF
— Belsat in English (@Belsat_Eng) November 29, 2020
Nevertheless, dozens of protest rallies and marches took place in Minsk residential areas, including Kamennaya Horka, Uruchcha, Dambrouka, Malinauka and others.
Nov 26. Video of first crackdown on column of protesters in Uruchcha residential area in #Minsk. Shortly before, people chanted, addressing #Lukashenka: ‘Get lost and take your #OMON along!’ #NeighboursMarch #BelarusProtest #Belarus pic.twitter.com/h7Og0VW2zD
— Belsat in English (@Belsat_Eng) November 29, 2020
Pro-government forces repeatedly dispersed the participants, but the latter formed columns again, often on nearby streets.
Nov 29. #Minsk today: Column of residents of Lebyadziny, Vyasnyanka, Masyukoushchyna, Dambrouka bedroom communities chanting in #Belarusian: ‘Join us!’ Protesters managed to gather even after dispersal #NeighboursMarch #Belarus #BelarusProtest Video: #Belsat viewers pic.twitter.com/rO5k390HqE
— Belsat in English (@Belsat_Eng) November 29, 2020
During the dispersals, some persons were severely beaten; there were cases of security officers’ using tear gas and flashbang grenades against protesters, sounds of shooting were heard in Zyalyony Bor and Uruchcha. Notably, troops were sometimes losing ground to demonstrators who managed to fight off several detainees.
Nov 29. Reports about police’s using tear gas, shooting (rubber bullets?) in Zyalyony Bor residential area in #Minsk Video: #Belsat viewers #Belarus #BelarusProtest #NeighboursMarch pic.twitter.com/bm65VVWIRC
— Belsat in English (@Belsat_Eng) November 29, 2020
Protest marches were also held in Brest, Hrodna, Zaslauye, Babruysk, Mahiliou, Vitsebsk, Zhodzina, Smalyavichy, Dzyarzhynsk, Baraulyany, Radashkovichy, Lyakhavichy, and other settlements.
Nov 29. #Minsk now: riot policeman (?) pointing gun at protester #Belarus #BelarusProtest #NeighboursMarch Video: #Belsat viewers pic.twitter.com/VF4fDFrUB4
— Belsat in English (@Belsat_Eng) November 29, 2020
By 8.30 pm, there have been nearly 320 names on human rights defenders’ lists of detainees, HRC Viasna reports.
Nov 29. Decentralised #NeighboursMarch in two minutes: there was no common gathering point, people formed columns in many residential areas and decided on where to march on the spot, which сomplicated pro-govt forces’ work on dispersing them #Belarus #BelarusProtest #Minsk https://t.co/EqaCQ3yqIu
— Belsat in English (@Belsat_Eng) November 29, 2020
For over three months, post-election protests have been underway in the country; the major demands of Belarusians are Lukashenka’s resignation; holding a free and fair election; releasing political prisoners; putting an end to police violence as well as bringing to justice those involved in battering and torturing peaceful demonstrators.
Since August 9, around 20,000 people have been detained across the country. Many of them were beaten, some were raped. There are at least seven death cases that are linked to the post-election protests. At least 520 persons, including Belsat TV journalists Katsyaryna Andreyeva and Darya Chultsova, are parties to criminal proceedings, the number of political prisoners exceeded 140. Several thousand detainees filed complaints against police officers’ illegal actions to the Investigative Committee. However, not a single criminal case has been opened over the citizens’ appeals.
