European press: “Lukashenka’s behaviour remains erratic and unpredictable”

Foreign policy signals from Minsk embarrass. Though Alyaksandr Lukashenka was wheedling the European Union lately, the dictator continues to direct fire against his critics inside the country, Neue Zürcher Zeitung runs.

Alyaksandr Lukashenka’s behaviour remains erratic and unpredictable. From the one hand, having made numerous concessions over last time, among them release of some of his political opponents, he tried to improve relations with the EU, undoubtedly, in hope for financial assistance. From the other hand, he hasn’t released yet his most famous political opponent, former candidate for presidency in Belarus Alyaksandr Kazulin, and doesn’t take any steps to start up a some sort of democratic, free from fear and pressure dialog.

Nevertheless, for Europeans, and above all for Americans, such steps are a necessary supposition for establishing closer diplomatic ties. It seems last days as if journalists had paid for release of political prisoners.

Beaten up journalists

27 and 28 March officers of Belarusian secret services KGB, sponsored directly by Lukashenka, burst into Minsk offices of accredited in Poland Radio Racyja and European Radio for Belarus (ERB). At the same time apartment of 30 independent journalists in Minsk, Brest, Homel, Hrodna and other towns were searched. Most of the journalists work for the above mentioned radio stations and TV channel BelSat.

As the KGB itself informs, they were searching for the material, insulting Lukashenka. At any case, secret agencies officers, who conducted searches, referred to search warrant, issued in 2005 in the connection with the criminal case against producers of cartoons, allegedly insulting Lukashenka. According to representatives of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, all detained late March journalists worked without accreditation. Some journalists were beaten up and unlawfully temporally detained. All equipment, owned by European Radio with staff of 20 people, was seized. Four computers were seized from Minsk office of Radio Racyja and 5 ones – from its Hrodna office.

Are cartoons just an excuse?

Consequences of this action are unpredictable yet. Radio stations, which had been searched, started broadcasting again, but journalists of Radio Racyja and ERB think, they will have to work without an office (it is difficult, but still possible with modern communicative technologies). One can also suppose that information on hard disks of the seized computers will provoke new legal proceedings against journalists. As the injured journalists think, searches were well prepared beforehand, so it seems that cartoons were just an excuse for beginning of the action. As Valyantin Zhdanko, director of Radio Liberty bureau in Minsk, said in the interview to NZZ, his radio station hadn’t been searched only because it had legal accreditation.

It is incomprehensible, how Lukashenka can hope for good relations with Brussels, taking into account these repressive actions. The despot apparently thinks he can divide inner policy from foreign policy – a position, similar to one of the Chinese leadership, which don’t understand how the West may mix up these “absolutely different notions” – human rights and foreign policy. But it may be possible, that in critical situations Lukashenka, who has remarkable political instinct, knows exactly where pressure should be stepped up and where slackened. Yes to dialog with the West, no to political freedom in the country – this concept won’t add him popularity in the West. FRG Government, for example, has recently (28 March) let him understand clearly that Belarus can’t rely on positive dynamics in relegations without recognition of democracy and human rights as well as without reasonable conditions for journalistic work.