Student community is unhappy with authorities’ actions, but their protest potential is low

Last week, for the first time in ten years, an unauthorized march of students was held in Minsk at the Belarusian State University (BSU) administration. The students were protesting against the introduction of fees for re-examination and tests at the BSU. About 90 students from different Belarusian universities gathered for the march, which had not been clamped down by the power bodies. It should be noted that other higher educational institutions have long practiced charging for the re-examination and tests without consulting with students, who have not been objecting these charges. That said, students are rather willing to sign online petitions to the authorities and write comments on social networks, including other safe ways of expressing their dissatisfaction with the university administration’s decisions. Student protest actions are unlikely to attract more participants and grow into political demands.