On May 16, 2017, the Belarusian opposition movement Havary Pravdu (Tell the Truth) was registered after seven years of unsuccessful attempts to gain official status. It was the seventh attempt to obtain the registration and Tatsyana Karatkevich (Co-Chairwoman) was not sure they would succeed this time. Karatkevich said that when the official handed over the registration papers he also warned the leaders (Andrey Dzmitryeu and herself) not to violate Belarusian laws.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Belarusian President stated that Lithuania and Poland could have been training fighters who were behind provocations in his country.

“The other camps were located in Ukraine (and), it seems to me, in Lithuania or Poland – I won’t insist on this, but somewhere there. The money was coming here via Poland and Lithuania”

Andrey Yegorov, the head of the Belarusian-based European Transformation Center says that by making such statements, Lukashenka is warning protesters not to participate on the protest planned for Saturday 25^th (which could bring thousands of people) and also as a justification for possible repressions including use of force. He also says that the administration is preparing for the day by fueling hysteria in the media about alleged fighters.

According to Yegorov, the protests along with these words by the President are a sign for the Western world to revise its policies of resuming the relations with Belarus.

The Belarusian Viasna Human Rights Centre and FIDH (the International Federation for Human Rights) believe that the new repression against peaceful protesters confirms the absence of political change in Belarus. More than 150 opposition activists, journalists, human rights defenders and average citizens have been detained since the protests began. On March 10, Vitali Rymasheuski (BCD), Anatol Liabedzka (UCP) and Yuri Hubarevich (MFF), were arrested and sentenced to 15 days administrative arrest. Pavel Seviarynets (BCD) was arrested on March 12 and sentenced also to 15 days administrative arrest. The same day Valiantsina Ihnatsenka, Chairperson of UCP in Orsa, was threatened with arrest and forced to stay home. The Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ) reported the arrest of 18 journalists and bloggers on March 12.

This way the authorities wanted to prevent them to participate in the planned and authorized protest of March 15.

On the day of the rally, March 15, people were detained arbitrarily on their way to the demonstration or on their way back home on the streets or in the public transport. The detentions were carried out by men dressed as civilians and people were taken to police stations in unmarked vehicles. Two independent websites operating from abroad were blocked during the mass protest. The protests gathered thousands of citizens in Minsk and other cities.

Arrests have continued after March 15. On March 19 authorities detained Viktar Marchyk from BPF together with 2 other organizers of planned rallies for that same day, Mikalay Charnavus, a local BPF activist, and Ryhor Hryk, an independent trade union leader.

And in addition to the citizens protesting against the Decree nr. 3, others have been detained for their actions impeding the beginning of the construction of a business center in Kuropaty.

As a response, Lukashenko says today that “Western funds under the direction of Western security services” are trying to “inflame the situation in Belarus”.

On March 9, Lukashenko announced that he will suspend the application of the Decree number 3 for one year. Those who paid the fee last year can request a refund. The Belarusian president spoke of the protestors in unexpectedly accommodating terms and promised to take officials to task for unfairly labeling anyone a parasite.

By suspending the unemployment tax he has found a way to both halt protests without capitulating to mass protest.

Part of the reason for backtracking is the ineffectiveness of the decree itself. Belarusian analysts doubt that the fee will even offset the cost of collecting it.

Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) has established a security zone with border controls along the country’s border with Belarus. Recently Belarus announced the five-day visa-free regime for some 80 countries (including USA and EU member countries) that will take effect on February 9. According to Moscow, the decision was taken “to create necessary conditions for the protection of the state border of the Russian Federation”. The establishment of a border zone came as a surprise because the two countries have formed a “union state” since January 2000 and there have been no border controls between them. Officials in Moscow have said Minsk’s resolution to abolish visas presents a security threat to Russia.