Anti-govt march in Belarus demands change of president

Tens of thousands of anti-government protesters gathered the Belarus capital Minsk on Sunday as part of a nationwide "march for freedom."

They were contesting the results of presidential elections last week that handed a sixth term to authoritarian ruler Alexander Lukashenko.

Participants waved historic white-red-white Belarusian flags used by the opposition, and many were dressed in those colours.

"You can look and see how many people are here and understand that the president didn't get 80% of the vote," said Dmitry Gordyuk, a supporter of opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya.

Similar marches were reported in other large cities across Belarus.

Anti-government leaders asked protesters to keep the event peaceful and ignore possible provocations.

Elsewhere in Minsk, a large crowd of pro-government supporters turned out for a rally held by Lukashenko.