On Sunday it is presidential election in Belarus – a election that has been made in advance.
The last election, in the summer of 2020, had major consequences for those who then protested against Lukashenko exclaiming himself as a winner despite losing.
– I was never as scared as I was in Belarus during the four months after the election and demonstrations in 2020, says Aliaksandr Klachko, who was forced to flee the country.
Tomorrow’s presidential election in Belarus will not be democratic, on the contrary it is settled in advance. The last election proclaimed Aleksandr Lukashenko as a winner after losing.
One of those who protested was Aliaksandr Klachko, 40. Together with thousands of Belarusians, his life changed completely in connection with the demonstrations.
– I traveled from Baranavitjy to Minsk in August 2020 and participated in peaceful protests. The police used grenades and water cannons against us, he tells TV4 News.
Was forced to flee to Lithuania
Aliaksandr’s own pictures show how a young man got the foot broken by a police grenade during a demonstration. Those who protested were imprisoned, killed and chased.
– I was scared in Bachmut, but never as scared as I was in Belarus during the four months after the election and demonstrations in 2020.
For fear of the regime’s violence, Aliaksandr was forced to flee to Lithuania. When Russia attacked Ukraine in 2022, he signed up as a volunteer and participated in the defense of Kiev. But a kidney disease made him a war invalid a year later.
Have been honored with medal
Aliaksandr Klachko has political asylum in Lithuania and has been honored with a medal by Svietlana Tichalanovskaya, the real election winner 2020.
While the dictator Aleksandr Lukashenko is now completely dependent on the support from Russia, Aliaksandr Klachko continues to fight for a free Belarus.
– My task is to weaken imperialist Russia in three ways: military, economically and politically. Then we have a 50/50 chance to reach independence for Belarus, he says and continues:
– If Kyiv falls, Ukraine falls. If Ukraine falls, my chance to return to a future free belarus disappears. The largest enemy of Belarus and Ukraine is the imperialist Russia.