Autorentext

Matthew Frear is Assistant Professor of Russian and Eurasian Politics at Leiden University, The Netherlands

Klappentext

This book explores the nature of the regime of Alexander Lukashenka, who has ruled Belarus since 1994, and who is often characterised as "the last dictator in Europe". It discusses how Lukashenka came to power, providing a survey of politics in Belarus in Soviet and early post-Soviet times, how power became personalised under his regime, how he coerced opponents, but also had good popular support, and how his authoritarianism was adapted in order to maximise popular support. The book also discusses current opposition strategies, and assesses how Lukashenka's regime is likely to develop in future.

Zusammenfassung
This book explores the regime of Alexander Lukashenka. It discusses how he came to power, how power became personalised under his regime, and how he coerced opponents, whilst maintaining popular support.

Inhalt

1. Introduction. 2. Adaptive Authoritarianism: A Conceptual Framework. 3. Personalization of Power Under Lukashenka: Institutions. 4. Personalization of Power Under Lukashenka: Elites. 5. Ruling Belarus: Public Consent and Policy Adaptation. 6. Ruling Belarus: State Coercion and Pre-Empting Democracy. 7. Challenging Adaptive Authoritarianism: Players. 8. Challenging Adaptive Authoritarianism: Tactics. 9. Conclusion.