WARSAW, Poland—The Belarusian opposition said Friday a dissident journalist was coerced to appear in a video on state TV in which he wept and praised the country’s authoritarian ruler. In the 90-minute video aired Thursday night, 26-year-old Roman Protasevich repented for his opposition activities and said he respects Belarus’ President Alexander Lukashenko as “a man with balls of steel.” His associates reacted with outrage, accusing the Belarusian authorities of forcing Protasevich to smear himself and disavow the opposition. Speaking on a visit to Poland, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the main opposition candidate in Belarus’ presidential election last August, said that Protasevich and other inmates speaking in videos from custody “are for sure being tortured and violated.” Tsikhanouskaya’s spokeswoman, Anna Krasulina, described Protasevich as a hostage. “He made his statements under tough physical and psychological pressure and, possibly, under drugs,” Krasulina told The Associated Press. “We demand the immediate release of Roman, who …