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Alexander Lukashenko, the seemingly omnipotent Belarusian dictator, has a problem. After recently ordering that dozens of key political opponents, including presidential candidates, be placed behind bars, he thought that he had brought under control acts of rebellion to his authoritarian rule. But it appears he has underestimated the bravery and creativity of his own people and the attentiveness of an international democratic community. Today, this last truly totalitarian regime in Europe faces a wide range of challenges to its continuing rule, from economic crisis and civil disobedience to global isolation.

Several significant developments, both in Belarus and abroad, are going to challenge Lukashenka's security and propagandistic apparatus. Belarus's artificial socio-economic...