Belarusian police arrested more than 100 people registering their discontent with the government by standing silently together in public, the Belapan news agency reported Thursday, according to dpa. At least two journalists also were held in the Wednesday evening demonstrations, which took place in the capital Minsk and several other provincial cities. Opponents of President Aleksandr Lukashenko in recent weeks have used the Internet communications to organize protests against his authoritarian rule. The demonstrations have been peaceful and calculated to avoid giving police solid legal grounds to stop them. Demonstrators in past protests have stood silently, clapped their hands, and sang folk songs before being arrested. On Thursday protesters stood in groups and rang their mobile telephones simultaneously. Most were detained on charges of participating in an unsanctioned public gathering. Lukashenko in recent months has cracked down on use of the Internet, which he has called a "cesspool." His police have arrested more than 1,800 anti-government demonstrators since the "silent" protests began. Belarus is mired in its worst economic crisis in 20 years, with rampant inflation and unemployment. Lukashenko has said authoritarian government is necessary to turn the economy around.
