1/ #Belarus THREAD - I just want to put it all in one place, in English: Some people are confused when we say #StandWithBelarus in the same sentence as #StandWithUkraine. Isn’t Belarus being used by Russia as a launching pad to invade Ukraine? Please read on for explanation...
2/ Belarus has been under the thumb of dictator AlexanderLukasahenko for 27+ years. MostBelarusians do not support either him or Russia’s insane invasion of Ukraine but even the slightest form of dissent gets protesters imprisoned, severely beaten, tortured & heavily fined.
3/ A year and a half ago,there was a presidential election in Belarus which dictator Lukashenko LOST. But unwilling to cede power, he & his junta claimed victory, falsified election outcomes to a ridiculous level, jailed his opponents or forcibly exiled anyone who dared protest.
4/ But dare they did. HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of braveBelarusians took to the streets, demanding the dictator stand down. His answer was to order riot police jail, torture & in some cases murder anyone who dared speak out...
5/ ...The pre-Soviet red and white Belarus flag that is used as a symbol of protest has been outlawed - and simply wearing the combination of red and white colors will get you arrested & sometimes worse...
6/ These days, the combination of blue and yellow, the colors of #Ukraine , are also forbidden, as is even the slightest form of anti-war protest. And yet Belarusians do protest, despite arrest & torture.
7/ More than that, as soon as Putin’s deranged & unprovoked invasion of Ukraine started, the entire Belarus opposition-in-exile movement transformed itself into a pro-Ukrainian anti-war anti-Putin effort.
8/ Sviatlana @Tsihanouskaya meets diplomats & world leaders daily, drumming up support for Ukraine and making sure the world understands that the Belarusian people are dead-set against their land & military being used to as a launching pad for the invasion.
9/ Other members of her team & the Belarus opposition Coordination Council in exile do the same on every platform possible, working daily to convince Belarusian citizens still under Lukashenko’s regime to resist this illegal invasion of their neighbor Ukraine.
10/Belarus journalists forced into exile use all means at their disposal to ensure their compatriots back home get real news of the invasion & its senseless brutality against civilians despite the Kremlin’s false narrative being blasted at them by Putin’s puppet Lukashenko...
11/...& what passes for“news”under his regime.Belarus expats worldwide join&lead pro-Ukraine anti-war protests.BYSOL &other opposition Belarus fundraising organizations have focused all of their efforts to funnel funds to helo the humanitarian crisis & defense effort in Ukraine.
12/BYPOL,the group of former law enforcement officers who escaped Belarus now oppose Lukashenko from abroa,are working with both cyber-warriors&incredibly brave partisans on the ground to disrupt railway&other systems being used to transport and support Russian soldiers&weapons.
13/ Last, but certainly not least, brave Belarusians have crossed into Ukraine and formed their own battalion to fight alongside Ukrainian forces to repel Russian invaders...
14/ Belarusian opposition leaders&activists have put the liberation of their own country from tyranny on hold to defend&support their sisters&brothers in Ukraine against the Russian invasion. It’s in this spirit that when we say #standwithbelarus we also mean #StandWithUkraine️
15/ P.S. I wrote all this out pretty quickly as a stream of thought, only had the idea of adding pics in the last minute, I’m tired, and Twitter doesn’t let you correct posts. So if anyone notices anything incorrect or missing, please comment. Thanks for listening.
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