Belarus' Competitive Authoritarianism: A Complex Political Landscape

Belarus is often referred to as the last dictatorship in Europe, ruled by an authoritarian government led by President Alexander Lukashenko since 1994. Lukashenko has been characterised as having an authoritarian ruling style and has been quoted as saying he runs the country as such. Elections are not considered free and fair, opponents of the regime are repressed, and the media is not free.

Lukashenko's rule has been described as adaptive authoritarianism, avoiding any ideology, even nationalism, and permitting great freedom of manoeuvre, enabling pragmatic adaptation to changing circumstances. This has allowed the regime to be highly adaptive for over a quarter of a century.

However, the 2020 presidential election, which saw Lukashenko re-elected for a sixth term, sparked unprecedented political mobilisation and mass demonstrations, with hundreds of thousands taking to the streets. This was enabled by an erosion in the three pillars of authoritarian stability: repression, cooptation, and legitimation.

Belarus' political system is a presidential republic with a bicameral parliament

Belarus is a presidential republic with a bicameral parliament, known as the National Assembly. The country's politics take place within this framework, and the President of Belarus is the head of state.

The President of Belarus is Alexander Lukashenko, who has been in power since 1994. Lukashenko has been described as having an authoritarian ruling style and is often referred to as "Europe's last dictator". He has been accused of rigging elections, repressing opponents, and controlling the media. Lukashenko has also been criticised for human rights violations and actions against NGOs, independent journalists, and national minorities.

The executive power in Belarus is nominally exercised by the government, which is headed by a Prime Minister appointed by the President. The legislative power is vested in the bicameral parliament, the National Assembly, which consists of the Council of the Republic and the House of Representatives. However, the President holds significant power and can enact decrees that carry the same weight as laws.

The constitution of Belarus, which was first adopted in 1994 and has since been amended multiple times, provides for the fundamental structure of the state. It establishes a separation of powers into legislative, executive, and judicial branches, with the President holding a key role in ensuring interaction and adequate performance of these branches.

The Republic of Belarus is a unitary democratic welfare and rule-of-law state. It exercises supreme control and authority over its territory and implements its domestic and foreign policies independently. The constitution guarantees human rights and freedoms as the highest importance and the supreme goal of society and the state.

The country's leader, Alexander Lukashenko, has been characterised as the last dictator in Europe

Alexander Lukashenko, the current president of Belarus, has been characterised as "the last dictator in Europe". Lukashenko has been the president of Belarus since 1994, making him the longest-serving head of state in Europe.

Lukashenko's rule has been marked by authoritarianism, the suppression of opponents, and the restriction of media freedom. International monitors have not deemed Belarusian elections to be free and fair, except for his initial win. Lukashenko has also been accused of rigging elections, with his contested victory in the 2020 presidential election sparking the largest anti-government protests during his rule.

Lukashenko's administration has been described as "adaptive authoritarianism", where the avoidance of any ideology, even nationalism, has allowed for the pragmatic adaptation to changing circumstances. Lukashenko's early economic policies aimed to prevent issues that occurred in other post-Soviet states, such as the establishment of oligarchic structures and mass unemployment.

Lukashenko's Soviet-style economic controls have relied heavily on cheap Russian energy and other subsidies. He has also bolstered ties with Russia, pushing for the formation of a new union state, and even allowed Moscow to use Belarusian territory to invade Ukraine in February 2022.

Lukashenko's rule has been characterised by harsh crackdowns on dissent, with over 35,000 people arrested during the 2020 protests. He has also been accused of human rights violations, and there have been several cases of persecution, including the disappearance or death of prominent opposition leaders and independent journalists.

Lukashenko's longevity in power is attributed to a mixture of factors, including the suppression of dissent, Soviet-style economic controls, and support from Russia.

Elections are not considered free and fair, and opponents of the regime are repressed

Belarus has been ruled by an authoritarian government since 1994, with Alexander Lukashenko often referred to as "Europe's last dictator". Elections in Belarus are not considered free and fair, with the regime doing its utmost to keep voters under its control. Independent election observers have not been invited to take part in the voting process, and the names of election commission members are kept secret. The Belarusian Telegraph Agency, the state news agency, blurred the faces of candidates in a photo used to report on the elections.

The political landscape has been "cleansed", with only four out of sixteen political parties that existed in 2020 remaining today, and all of them expressing full support for Lukashenko. The regime has created an atmosphere of fear, with human rights activists reporting that repression and arbitrary arrests have become commonplace. There has been a sharp increase in the number of cases of political persecution, with 5,200 cases reported by the end of 2023, up from 650 at the end of 2020.

The Belarusian government has also taken steps to restrict the ability of its citizens abroad to vote, with more than 1.8 million people disenfranchised due to a new rule prohibiting them from voting in embassies. The government has also banned independent media outlets and social media channels, characterising any form of communication with them as "aiding extremist activity".

The crackdown on dissent has extended beyond the political sphere, with workers of state companies facing mass layoffs in connection with their alleged participation in protests. The families of political prisoners have also been targeted, with arbitrary searches, detentions, interrogations, and other forms of harassment.

The Belarusian authorities have been widely criticised by human rights organisations and foreign governments for their actions. The US has condemned the "sham" elections and the "deteriorating human rights situation" in Belarus, while the EU has imposed sanctions on Belarusian officials in response to the ongoing attacks on human rights and the government's involvement in Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The media is not free

Belarus has been described as an authoritarian regime with a rich history of rigged elections, referendums, and post-electoral crackdowns. The country's leader, Alexander Lukashenko, has been referred to as "Europe's last dictator". Elections are not considered free and fair, and the media is not free.

The mass media in Belarus consists of TV, radio, newspapers, magazines, cinema, and internet-based websites and portals. The government monopolises the media, owning all TV channels and most radio and print media. The media landscape is one of the most repressive in Europe, with the BBC describing it as such.

The Ministry of Information of Belarus, established in 2001, serves as the country's media regulator. Licensing and registration procedures are opaque and politicised. Since 2009, all media outlets, including websites, need to register or face blockage. Independent publications have been forced to use foreign-based internet domains, and outlets that "threaten the state's interests" can be denied accreditation and shut down.

The Belarusian constitution guarantees freedom of speech, but this is contradicted in practice by repressive and restrictive laws. Arbitrary detention, arrests, and harassment of journalists are frequent. Anti-extremism legislation targets independent journalism, and material considered unfavourable to the president is punishable by up to five years in prison. Insulting the president can also result in a prison sentence of up to two years.

The government subjects both independent and foreign media to systematic political intimidation, especially when reporting on the deteriorating economy and human rights abuses. Journalists are harassed and detained for reporting on unauthorised demonstrations or working with unregistered media outlets. They have also been killed in suspicious circumstances.

Most local independent outlets regularly practice self-censorship. Reporters Without Borders ranked Belarus 154th out of 178 countries in its 2010 Press Freedom Index. In 2021, after a year-long purge of independent media by the Lukashenko regime, the country dropped to 158th place. As of 2023, Belarus ranks 157th in the World Press Freedom Index, and almost no independent media outlets still work inside the country.

The country has been ruled by an authoritarian government since 1994

Lukashenko's rule has been described as "adaptive authoritarianism", marked by the avoidance of any particular ideology, including nationalism, which has allowed him to adapt pragmatically to changing circumstances. This has enabled him to maintain good popular support, despite the authoritarian nature of his regime.

Lukashenko's rise to power began with the 1994 elections, where he defeated the then-prime minister, Vyacheslav Kebich, in a runoff vote. Lukashenko's subsequent actions included re-instating Soviet-era functions and reintroducing symbols from Soviet Belarus. He has also been quoted as saying that he has an ""authoritarian ruling style" that he uses to run the country.

Under Lukashenko, the government has been criticised by organisations such as the Council of Europe, Human Rights Watch, and the US State Department, for its anti-democratic practices, human rights violations, and actions against NGOs, independent journalists, and opposition politicians. The regime has also been accused of several cases of persecution, including the disappearance or death of opposition leaders and journalists.

The 2020 presidential election, which resulted in Lukashenko's sixth term in office, triggered mass demonstrations and a crackdown on dissent, with thousands of people arrested and independent media outlets shut down. The election was labelled a ""sham" by the US State Department, and Lukashenko's decision to run for a seventh term in the 2025 election has been met with opposition calls for a boycott.

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