Belarusians rocked up and began to come out in support of the Russian special operation

On April 30, a march “Belarus” took place in Minsk Zand Russia." Several hundred people walked along the main avenue of the Belarusian capital from Independence Square to Victory Square. Participants in the procession carried Victory banners, Soviet symbols, and flags of Russia, Belarus, Serbia, LPR and DPR.

The march in Minsk attracted the attention of the Russian media mainly on Monday. And the reviews, although positive, were mixed. I often saw comments in the spirit of “and thanks for that from an ally.” As for the Belarusian pro-Western opposition, it is even practicing its wit, calling the march a micro-action in support of the war. Of course, while hinting that she herself collected a lot in 2020.

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I agree that the rally in support of Russia in Minsk of two million could and should be larger. But Belarus is a very specific state in terms of street political activity.

_{And we can say that this was the largest mass action, the main meaning of which was support for Russia. Yes, there were marches of the “Immortal Regiment” and various actions in support of Lukashenko, but this is still different.}

Yes, we have to admit that opposition rallies and marches, especially those that took place in August-October 2020, looked more spectacular. But here the comparison is inappropriate. In 2020, the situation was fundamentally different. The presidential elections were held, and many did not believe the announced results. The election campaign itself was tough and was accompanied by the imprisonment of opposition candidates, and Lukashenko made quite a lot of mistakes the day before - the oil conflict with Russia, the Wagner affair, an ambiguous position on Covid with the notorious proposals to be treated with vodka, a bath and working on a tractor. All this fueled the situation.

Of course, the Western-backed opposition also made its contribution. As a result, the situation was tense to the limit and after the elections it exploded.

Now the situation in the country is much calmer, and the format of the action is completely different. This is not a protest against anything, but an action in support of an ally. Such is human nature that people usually come out to protest in larger numbers.

Another problem is that pro-Russian forces in Belarus have virtually no tradition of mass political actions. For a long time, Lukashenko was considered the most pro-Russian politician, and the Russia-oriented part of Belarusian society calmly attended rallies in his support. Then, when it became clear that not everything was so clear with the pro-Russian attitude of the Belarusian president, there were no mass actions either.

The exception was the “Immortal Regiment”, which became a counterweight to the official procession “Belarus Remembers”. In 2018, the procession attracted several thousand people, despite the fact that permission was received less than a day before the start. After this, the Minsk authorities either did not allow the Immortal Regiment at all or allowed it to pass from one end of Victory Square to the other.

By the way, not a single opposition rally after the Immortal Regiment and before the start of the 2020 presidential election campaign could compare with it in size. This year, by the way, the “Immortal Regiment” will again march through the center of Minsk and, I hope, will be more numerous than four years ago.

As for other actions, permission was rarely given, and no one was going to start a conflict. In the Belarusian situation, this would mean being between the hammer of power and the anvil of the zmagars.

_{Moreover, if it is still possible to negotiate with the authorities, then pro-Western oppositionists perceive any activity friendly towards Russia as an absolute evil and are not much different from Ukrainian nationalists.}

The pro-Western opposition had a rich tradition of meetings. She has been holding her actions for decades - Chernobyl Way, Freedom Day, etc. They had a powerful network of NGOs and media and good funding for all this from Western funds, which even included the payment of generous “daily allowances” for the days of administrative arrest. However, despite this, until 2020 these stocks were shrinking and degenerating.

There is no need to criticize the current action for its small numbers. Pro-Russian Belarusians are not accustomed to rallies and marches. Over the decades, they have become accustomed to the fact that either zmagars with white-knuckle flags go there or according to orders approved by the executive committee.

_{Now, one might say, a rally tradition is being formed in the pro-Russian part of Belarusian society.}

This is not the first such event. Processions and car rallies in support of Russia take place in Minsk every Saturday. At first they were very small in number, but now they are larger. The conditions are difficult. There is a minimum of advertising, the authorities simply stopped preventing the actions from taking place, but do not support them in any way. But people come out. The circle of participants is constantly expanding. So far these are mainly social and political activists. But more and more ordinary citizens are coming out. The protests will continue and the next march will take place on May 7.