I’m staring into the eyes of Vladimir Lenin, the Russian revolutionary who founded the Soviet Union.
It feels like I’ve travelled back in time. In fact, I’ve come to the headquarters of the Communist Party of Belarus.
A huge portrait of Lenin dominates the room in which I’m interviewing Sergei Syrankov, the party chief. He is one of five candidates in Sunday’s presidential election.
It seems Lenin isn’t the only leader he admires. Presidential incumbent Alexander Lukashenko appears to have achieved hero status too.
“We call him Bat’ka,” says Sergei Syrankov, referring to Belarusians’ affectionate nickname for the 70-year-old, meaning ‘father’.
“Bat’ka is not only the person we have to thank for a child’s birth, Bat’ka will also feed the child, protect them, get them on their feet, and create all the conditions for their development and confidence in their future.”
It says a lot about an election, and a country, that a candidate endorses his rival rather than criticises him.
But this is not a normal election. The winner is not in doubt.
After 31 years in power, Lukashenko is set for a seventh consecutive term, even though he’s not campaigning.
On a recent factory visit, he told workers that he didn’t have time for it, claiming he’s too busy working for the nation.
Others are still canvassing for votes, however, giving the illusion of choice.
Image: Anna Kanoupatskay is running as an independent presidential candidate
Outside an upmarket shopping centre in downtown Minsk, the Belarusian capital, we meet Anna Kanopatskaya, who is running as an independent.
She and a handful of supporters are doing their best to distribute leaflets, asking passers-by for their vote.
But even this supposed- opposition candidate struggles to find fault with Bat’ka when I ask what is wrong with his leadership.
“What’s wrong?” Ms Kanopatskaya repeats, sounding surprised.
“Presumably you think something’s wrong with it if you want to replace him,” I suggest.
Image: The five election candidates are ‘like a fan club of Lukashenko’, says exiled opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya
After some hesitation, she replies “First of all, he’s not so young and he’s not such an effective and progressive a manager”, before quickly adding that sometimes he is “very successful”.
By ensuring his rivals double up as supporters, Lukashenko has clearly learnt his lesson after the last election in 2020 triggered days of mass protests.
He was accused of stealing victory from the opposition and the wave of unrest that followed nearly swept him from power.
It was only after a brutal crackdown, in which tens of thousands were detained, that he regained control.
Opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya has been in exile ever since. Speaking to Sky News at the World Economic Forum in Davos this week, she called for Belarusians to boycott Sunday’s poll.
“It will be like an imitation. It will be a farce. It will be like the reappointment of a dictator by a dictator,” she said.
“All these five people who are participating, it’s like a fan club of Lukashenko.”
Those not in the fan club are either too afraid to speak out or have already been silenced by lengthy jail terms.
Some opposition figures have been released in recent months, in a sign Lukashenko may want to rekindle relations with the West. But there is a long way to go before he can claim Belarus is free of repression.
According to human rights groups, more than 1,200 political prisoners remain behind bars.
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