What started as random gatherings in support of Opposition presidential candidate Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, as well as the first demonstrations of Women in White, quickly evolved into a country-wide Belarusian protest against the obviously rigged elections of August 9. After days of brutal government repression with some 7,000 protestors detained and tortured, on August 18, the Belarusian Opposition launched a Coordination Council for the Transfer of Power in Belarus. The council’s mandate is to coordinate a peaceful and orderly transfer of power from Alexander Lukashenko, the incumbent president, and to hold a new, free and fair presidential election at the earliest opportunity. About 70 members of the council are public opinion and professional leaders from different backgrounds. The council is expected to elect a seven-member presidium which will then elect a chairperson.
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Bohdan Ben: Belarusian protests encompass all social groups
A woman takes part on August 16 in a Belarus rally to protest the August 9 rigged presidential election of dictator Alexander Lukashenko.
