Minsk, Belarus
Belarus’ strongman, President Alyaksandr Lukashenka, claimed victory this week in a referendum that amended the constitution to allow him to run for an unlimited number of terms. International observers from Europe said that the referendum was rigged and that parliamentary elections held at the same time were also unfair. Not a single opposition candidate won any of the parliament’s 110 seats. Election observers said they witnessed ballot-box stuffing and irregular counting, including one instance where the poll tallier ignored the ballots altogether and made a phone call to ask what number to put on his official results form. Observers from Belarus’ fellow former Soviet states, however, pronounced the election “free and fair.”
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Nepal chooses toddler as its new ‘living goddess’Under the Radar Girls between two and four are typically chosen to live inside the temple as the Kumari – until puberty strikes
-
October 5 editorial cartoonsCartoons Sunday's political cartoons include half-truth hucksters, Capitol lockdown, and more
-
Jaguar Land Rover’s cyber bailoutTalking Point Should the government do more to protect business from the ‘cyber shockwave’?
