“Minsk! Do not approach the police line! The best decision now is to disperse.” The crowd did just that. Again, advice flashed up in the Nexta Telegram feed. It was clear that attempting to push through would result in bloody clashes. Outside was a police line: cars, makeshift fences and a few hundred riot officers in balaclavas with shields. “Nexta says we should go towards the residence!” one man called out, joining a column of people making the short walk to Lukashenko’s official residence. The first place they looked was Nexta Live (pronounced “Nekhta” and meaning “someone” in Belarusian), a channel on Telegram. Each week, Nexta has announced the time and place of the protest a day or two before
#The telegram install#
Mobile internet was not working for everyone (the authorities had been switching it off at key moments) but those tech-savvy enough to install the right virtual private network (VPN) apps were able to relay the news. After a tense, half-hour standoff, they looked down at their phones again. Some people shouted abuse others offered the soldiers flowers and implored them to join the side of the people.
When we arrived, the monument had been surrounded by barbed wire and placed under armed guard. The enormous crowd began to flow from Independence Square, through the broad central avenues of Minsk towards a second world war memorial – because many people had received messages on their phones telling them to head there.
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