Talk politics.

A curious form of protest was invented in Belarus. Hand clapping. People who are disgusted with the economic drama, the political comedy and all the figureheads serving the man with the black mustache and the funny military hat, Lukashenko, are clapping in silence because they know the mock applause is the most eloquent criticism. There was a time the Russian poet Osip Mandelstam used to write mock poems about Stalin, but the final drop of patience in the Politburo came when he eventually composed a "praise" ode for dear-leader. Then he was sent to the GULags.

The fake applause is deafening. I saw on TV (the No Comment section on Euronews) a crowd standing beneath the commie-time monument in the center of Minsk where stone giants dressed in worker's uniforms stood in grandeur positions. But ordinary people below were clapping and not saying a word, not waving any protest signs, not chanting slogans, no songs, nothing that could have them arrested. Just standing there and hitting their hands against one another. But meanwhile there were cops (Militsia) going around the crowd with hi-tech HD cams making shots so they could later recognize the "instigators", while the instigators in turn were taking pics of the cops with their mobiles. Tech war at its best, eh?

And then the crackdown began.

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The thing is, these silent protests were organized through the social network. There's a group called "In contact" on FB, channeling the discontent with Lukashenko who has held his grip on power for 17 years, and who last December was re-re-re-elected with the "amazing" 80%. There were mass protests back then, but all that anger was quickly subdued through hundreds of arrests, including the detention of 7 of the presidential candidates who had bothered to take part in that farce, plus a couple dozen journalists who had dared to cover the event. But despite all that the opposition is not giving up, and this time it's flooding the social networks using the Arab model.

There are many protest groups but the main one is "Movement for the future - Revolution through the social network", founded by a 24 year old guy named Vyacheslav Dianov. For 3 years he has been an active participant in various political and civic activities against Lukashenko, but after the December protests his office in Minsk was stormed by the secret services (ironically, still officially called KGB in Belarus!), so he was forced to leave the country and move to Poland (which hosts many of the Belarussian dissidents, especially young students).

The idea of this movement is very simple. Each Wednesday, at 7 pm, everybody who's unhappy with Lukashenko's regime goes to the nearest square and silently claps with their hands. Nothing more. The purpose is to prevent the authorities from trying to formulate these flash-mobs as official protests and this way to avoid direct confrontation with the Militsia. But that obviously didn't help and you can see the result. Nevertheless, the protesters are not giving up.

Their purpose is also clear: the end of the Lukashenko regime, end of dictatorship and opening up the country for the world. Obviously the regime is scared of this situation, because people are going on the street without displaying any clear demands, slogans and open forms of protest. There are no known leaders. They don't attack the police. It's all a new form of protest which could hardly be controlled. You just can't get the instigators. Its power comes from the fact that all people gather in various locations at the same time, and they become more numerous every next week.

The social network is buzzing with this. Most participants are of the young generation, but apparently their parents are also on their side, although silently. Maybe they've lost hope that anything could change through protest, but obviously their kids beg to differ, so they won't give up. Sure, there are many who would claim that Lukashenko has made the country prosperous and safe, there's no crime on the streets, the cities are clean... But in fact at the moment the dirtiest gang of criminals occupies the top ranks in Belarus.

So last Wednesday was the third in a row, and still more people gathered. Still not too many, something like 2500-3000 in Minsk, but their number is growing. The movement has over 200 thousand online members, many other opposition groups with such funny names like "Fed up with Lukashenko", "Those who dreamt of Lukashenko" and "Lukashenkos around the world, unite" are flooding the internet every day.

Just how much the dictator is out of touch with the situation becomes evident from his claims (spoken at a press conference) that the typical protester is 16-17 years old, with a cigarette in his mouth, and with a girl in his arm. But the caricature aside, the regime's fear from these civic activities is obvious. Last month, when there were protests in 30 towns across Belarus, more than 400 people were arrested (data by the Vesna NGO). And coordinated hacker attacks against the Movement are also frequent.

There's skepticism among the old traditional opposition as well. For example Alexander Feduta (former Lukashenko ally, now turned his arch-rival, who was arrested in December but recently released from prison) said in a newspaper interview that the social networks are doing a nice job but it's not enough. The real change would happen not when some 20 year old kidos go around the street clapping, but when their 40 year old parents leave their work place and go on strike. Only then the regime would crumble, he claims. OK, maybe so. Time will tell. And that time may not be so far away.

Why? Because things are not as nice as they are made to look on the surface by the propaganda machine of the regime. The Belarussian Ruble has lost nearly 60% of its value for the first half of this year alone, dragging down the whole economy with it. Inflation is nearing 35%, the most basic goods are getting more expensive by the hour, and much worse, they're becoming scarce. The 500 dollar average salary promised by Lukashenko is more than a mirage now, and discontent is growing even within the security forces (the most hardcore supporters of the regime). It's a recipe for another Arab-style scenario.

The government is planning to privatize some of the state-owned companies to cover some of its short-term debts to Russia and Europe, but that's just a temporary solution. Even with the aid promised by the IMF, the economic situation would hardly stabilize for too long. And it's still unclear if Russia would run to the rescue once again.

Meanwhile the organization of the young opposition continues to develop and expand around the social networks, and it promises to give a lot of heat to the government during this summer. And of course next Wednesday at 7 pm the protesters will gather again around the squares and clap silently. Bravo, Lukashenko!