The 99th anniversary of the Bolshevik Revolution saw Lenin statues subjected to protests and vandalism in two cities in Belarus on November 7.
Contrasting Styles Of 'Lenin' Protests In Belarus
![In the Belarusian capital, a Lenin monument was moved from inside the Minsk Tractor Works to a public location in time for the 99th anniversary of the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917. ](https://gdb.rferl.org/08d6716f-097d-46b0-8258-6bb0768de6d2_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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In the Belarusian capital, a Lenin monument was moved from inside the Minsk Tractor Works to a public location in time for the 99th anniversary of the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917.
![An actor dressed as Lenin -- leader of the Bolsheviks and later the Soviet Union -- addressed the crowd in Minsk.](https://gdb.rferl.org/440de558-b9c9-4b4f-8f9b-128f738b17b3_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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An actor dressed as Lenin -- leader of the Bolsheviks and later the Soviet Union -- addressed the crowd in Minsk.
![Elderly women marched and sang before the Minsk ceremony. Belarus is the only country of the former U.S.S.R. that marks November 7 as a national holiday.](https://gdb.rferl.org/935c00e1-ab2b-482b-967e-8d5441a78738_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Elderly women marched and sang before the Minsk ceremony. Belarus is the only country of the former U.S.S.R. that marks November 7 as a national holiday.
![In a protest against the celebrations, Malady Front (Youth Front) opposition movement leader Zmitser Dashkevich made his way into the thick of the crowd before lifting a sign with a slightly modified version of a notorious Lenin quote that said: "The more representatives of religious clergy that are shot, the better."](https://gdb.rferl.org/358b3f76-b766-45cf-b882-d842561e9ea7_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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In a protest against the celebrations, Malady Front (Youth Front) opposition movement leader Zmitser Dashkevich made his way into the thick of the crowd before lifting a sign with a slightly modified version of a notorious Lenin quote that said: "The more representatives of religious clergy that are shot, the better."
![Dashkevich and unidentified associates shouted, "Shame! Shame!" before being attacked by the head of Belarus's pro-government Youth Union, Syarhey Klishevich (lower right).](https://gdb.rferl.org/bc6c65a7-e810-4fec-b020-0819166dbf31_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Dashkevich and unidentified associates shouted, "Shame! Shame!" before being attacked by the head of Belarus's pro-government Youth Union, Syarhey Klishevich (lower right).
![As Klishevich attacked Dashkevich, Klishevich reportedly shouted communist slogans. ](https://gdb.rferl.org/4d283372-e88e-4e7d-95c6-a9161fd82759_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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As Klishevich attacked Dashkevich, Klishevich reportedly shouted communist slogans.
![Riot police then moved in to arrest Dashkevich. ](https://gdb.rferl.org/2005af9b-b386-4a2c-a4a2-474fe94d1faa_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Riot police then moved in to arrest Dashkevich.
![The Minsk ceremony continued slightly behind schedule, but the day wasn't over for Lenin. ](https://gdb.rferl.org/2687116a-ae12-49c8-8b31-0cdf07c7db1c_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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The Minsk ceremony continued slightly behind schedule, but the day wasn't over for Lenin.
![In the city of Lida, around 175 kilometers from Minsk, activists vandalized the town's Lenin statue with red paint. ](https://gdb.rferl.org/952316e7-08b1-4fd7-94f5-67aee0b8e04d_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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In the city of Lida, around 175 kilometers from Minsk, activists vandalized the town's Lenin statue with red paint.