When the Belarusian president, Alexander Lukashenko, ordered a Ryanair flight to divert to Minsk and arrested a wanted dissident who was on board, opposition activists inside the country were shocked and scared.
The mass street protests that began last summer have been crushed, with fear driving people off the streets.
But the authorities are still rounding up anyone linked to the opposition movement and hundreds of people are now behind bars.
Sarah Rainsford and Matthew Goddard have just returned from Minsk where they’ve been speaking to some of those whose lives have been changed for good by the protests.
Correspondent: Sarah Rainsford
Shot/edited by Matthew Goddard
