Anarchism in Belarus

Anarchists did not view democracy as a viable alternative, as the word meant "kratiya", or power, specifically of the bourgeoisie.

Expropriation and the provocation of individual terror created a halo of the "defenders of the working class" around anarchists, and were used as some of their most decisive tactics.

Eventually, however, the Councils of People's Self-Government, which was the dream of Peter Kropotkin's supporters, was converted by the party’s bureaucracy into its auxiliary bodies.

In the summer of 1992, at the initiative of Aleh Novikaŭ, activists from Minsk, Homiel, and Śvietłahorsk joined the Federation of Anarchists of Belarus (FAB).

On October 6, 1992, on International Unemployment Day, anarchists in Homiel held an unsanctioned rally, which ended in arrests and clashes with police.

The anarchist newspaper Navinki, which had been circulated illegally since its creation in 1998, was officially registered in 1999 as a result of the "Legalize It" campaign.

FAB activists helped form the independent environmental initiative "Ekasupraciŭ", which accepted responsibility for the organization of the entire campaign.

The initiative drew support from employees of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, as well as members of the Russian environmental movement Rainbow Keepers.

In the summer of 1998, activists from Ekasupraciŭ organized a "March for Nuclear Free Belarus" on the site in Mahiloŭ Region, where the power plant was to be constructed.

[14] On October 12, Belarusian deputy interior minister Hienadź Kazakievič named anarchists among the organizers of the mass protests.

[17] The "Anarchist Black Cross" claimed that one of the activists was tortured in SIZO KGB by a stun gun in order to collaborate and testify.

[18] One Minsk resident had even reportedly been beaten by police and forced to confess to involvement in the anarchist movement and the administration of their groups on social media.

[24] "Anarchist Black Cross" group claimed that he was tortured in order to give access to his computer data.