The heavy-handed rule of Alexander Lukashenko gags the opposition, convicting its leaders and sending them to prison and to what are called 'penal colonies'.

In addition, the LAT notes Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko's dubious record: he extended his term in a dummy referendum, and has been known to gag the opposition press and imprison dissidents.

In December 1945, Albanians elected a new People's Assembly, but only candidates from the Democratic Front (previously the National Liberation Movement then the National Liberation Front) appeared on the electoral lists, and the communists used propaganda and terror tactics to gag the opposition.