Belarus Sends in Police As Vote Questioned

The government sent busloads of riot police into central Minsk on Monday night as the opposition protested President Alexander Lukashenko's overwhelming re-election, and the United States and Europe threatened sanctions over the vote they said was fraudulent.
Only about 5,000 demonstrators showed up - about half the number that had come after the polls closed Sunday night for a protest whose size was extraordinary in the tightly controlled country where police have cracked down swiftly on unsanctioned opposition gatherings. ___________________
See Also:
Belarus Leader's Victory Rejected By US as OSCE Finds Fraud
Lukashenko win in Belarus sets US, Russia at odds
Opposition candidate calls poll results anti-constitution coup
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Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus with an iron fist since 1994, declared that his foes had failed to topple him in a foreign-backed ``revolution.'' Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Lukashenko and said the outcome would strengthen their alliance. International observers described the vote as falling short of democratic standards, and Washington called for a new election.
Mar 20, 2006