World News
- Belarus, or ‘White Russia’; a country considered the black hole of
Europe, the last government run by what can only be described as a
dictatorship faces mounting criticism and economic woe. An ‘Outpost of
Tyranny’ — one of six countries labeled so by former Secretary of State
Condoleeza Rice in 2005.
Lukashenko - Media censorship, rigged elections, a failing economy, and
the imprisonment and torture of political prisoners plague this
relatively new and unknown entity in Eastern Europe that became fully
realized in 1991, but remains tied to Russia via a treaty for a Union
State passed 1999.
The terrorizing secret police are routinely deployed and still referred
to as the KGB in this country known to collaborate with autocrats like
Qaddaffi. Grassroot protests originating on social-networking websites
would gather in city squares every protest, only to be met with mass
arrests.
Alexander Lukashenko has ruled this country of ten million people since
1994. In recent revelations, political prisoners serving upwards of six
years manual labor are to be released in return of money granted by the
IMF. Many prisoners include journalists and political rivals from the
last election in December 2010.
The highest-profile detainee being former presidential candidate Andrei
Sannikov. Whom has reportedly been subjected to cruel torture while many
fear for his life. Sannikov is currently awaiting transfer to the
Babruisk penal colony, while many fear he will succumb to disease,
malnutrition, or execution.
Journalists like the editor-in-chief of www.charter97.org, Natalya
Radzina, have been arrested and beaten by KGB for articles critical of
the Lukashenko regime. Harassment and raids of offices result in the
confiscation of records and the arrest of activists. The neighboring
country of Lithuania has since granted VISA citizenship and refugee
status for activists like Radzina, where she and other Belarusian expats
have formed and continue their efforts to stymie Lukashenko.
Trade deficit is over seven billion dollars, inflation expected to reach
100% by the end of the year. Average monthly salary is down to $200.
Citizens are buying everything the stores have remaining on their
shelves, as prices rise daily. Shortages of meat run rampant as Russians
from the East buy in bulk due to favorable exchange rates.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk also underlined the need for changes
in Belarus before the EU could help during the EU’s Eastern Partnership
summit in Warsaw on September 30, 2011. ”For the first time, we have a
situation in which the European Union, standing united, conditions aid
for Belarus on real changes,” Tusk said.
“These are not radical changes. These are changes that for every
European are the minimum without which there is nothing to talk about.”
