19 March 2024, Tuesday, 7:09
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OAC Aims To Destroy High Technologies Park

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OAC Aims To Destroy High Technologies Park

Who is getting Belarus into the trouble of new sanctions?

Blocking of independent websites endangers the very independence of Belarus.

Editor-in-Chief of the website Charter97.org Natallia Radzina told this in an interview for Belsat:

- Natallia, why Belarusian Partisan, why now?

- It’s absolutely obvious that the order to close down the Belarusian Partisan came from the special services, namely, from the very core of the Operative Analytical Center (OAC) at Lukashenka’s administration. Today, the Ministry of Information is trying to find the excuse to explain why this portal has beel closed.

This is the operation of the special services, just like the “While Legion” case, when they first arrested people, put them in jail, tortured them in the KGB, and then started looking which article to incriminate on them. The same picture we are observing now with regard to the Belarusian Partisan.

- Is it connected with the change of head of the Operative-Analytical Center in any way?

- Certainly. I believe this is connected with tthe fact that the young staff of the OAC are trying to pander to the dictator. Or maybe they are leading their own game. That is why it can’t be ruled out that they are quitting on Lukashenka in this situation. Because what we see now is either some shizophrenia of the authorities, or a simple frame.

Why am I speaking about shizophrenia at power? Because recently, Lukashenka, who has been destroying the freedom of word in the country for over 20 years, and Usevalad Yancheuski, the ex-chief ideologist, announced that the Decree “On the Development of Digital Economy” would be signed in Belarus soon.

What development of the digital economy can we possibly talk about in the country with the dictatorial regime ruling for over 20 years, where all the freedoms are practically non-existent? In the situation when there’s escalation of pressure on the internet-journalists, we can only speak about the creation of the internet-GULAG.

What investors could possible come here? Who will invest money in the so-called Lukashenka’s silicon valley, if they repress journalists here?

As for some own game conducted by the special services. It’s pretty obvious that, on the one side, the OAC is trying to pander to the ruler, and on the other side, they are trying to frighten Lukashenka with various threats.They quit on him thus. Because, if he has an intention to let the High Technologies Park develop, so that some western investments would come here, then they are burning all bridges in this regard, and they will never let to create anything here.

- Co-founder of the Belarusian Partisan Sviatlana Kalinkina told that it might be connected with the publication which in some way concerned Lukashenka’s son Viktar, who is also connected with the Operative-Analytical Center. She added that the ruler seemed to move this team back off power now. Maybe this hurt him somehow?

- I think there can be many reasons. The reason is always there, in a situation when they want to close the Internet resources. We have the information that the Belarusian authorities, in particular, exerted pressure on the Polish authorities to stop financing the independent media of Belarus. In particular, the TV-channel Belsat, the Radio Racyja and the Charter97.org website. But the Polish authorities did not succumb to this blackmail.

And today the authorities switched to the plan “B”, began to destroy the media inside the country. Moreover, the warning has already sounded today: the media that work from abroad can come next.

- Do I get it right that blocking of the Belarusian Partisan is just the first step?

- Without solidarity of the journalists, without active reaction – yes. Therefore, I am calling for solidarity with our colleagues from the Belarusian Partisan today, because this is most important now. Yes, we are all different, we have different content, we compete in some spheres. However, today it’s vital to forget all this and be solidary.

If we are silent today, if we don’t stand for our colleagues – it might happen to us tomorrow. Also, we need to achieve serious reaction from the international journalist community, the international human rights community, and to demand imposing of sanctions against the Lukashenka regime for yet another violation of the freedom of word. And I am sure there will be sanctions. Because Lukashenka once was under the sanctions for the destruction of the media, and he risks to repeat this experience.

- I would like to turn attention that this is the first blocking of a media resourse after the appointment of new Minister of Information Aliaksandr Karliukevich this September. It looks like the new Minister uses same old methods.

- Absolutely. What did you think? There cannot be one good Minister in a dictatorship. Absolutely all officials, ministers in the Lukashenka regime are cogs in the wheel of this system. They follow the orders which they get directly from Lukashenka today, from the special services.

In this situation, the Ministry of Information saluted and is now trying “to justify repression by a law”, following the principle of Stalin.

- Of course, the authorities do not like what the Belarusian Partisan and other independent resources write. At the same time, recently we were concerned with the fact that Russian information resources launched an attack on Belarus, on the leader of Belarus. Nevertheless, there was no reaction, no resources were blocked. The whole world is fighting against the Russian propaganda, and Belarus does not do anything about it?

- Apparently, Lukashenka does not understand that the threat to him is provided not by Belarusian independent media, but, first of all, today he is threatened by the Russian propaganda. Due to the fact that Russian television channels are freely operating in the country, today Putin is more popular in Belarus than Lukashenka. At any time, anything can happen with Lukashenka himself. He is on a short leash to the Kremlin and in this situation, of course, cannot close the Russian media. Therefore, he continues to fight inertially with the independent media of Belarus, who in fact are defending the country's independence.

Independent media of Belarus today are fighting against Putin's propaganda, which threatens the sovereignty of our country. But I would like to emphasize one more fact, which must be paid attention to. There are two leading opposition websites in the country: the Charter'97 website and the Belarusian Partisan website. Founder of the Charter97.org Aleh Biabenin was killed in 2010. The authorities then had hopes that after that the site would stop working, but the site continued to work successfully. A year ago, journalist Pavel Sheremet was killed. Now they are trying to block the work of the Belarusian Partisan, which did not stop working after the death of its founder. So in the case of Pavel Sheremet’s death you need to look for the “Belarusian trace”.

- The Belarusian trace, of course. There is such a version. However, speaking about the website, and the importance thereof for the Belarusian users, how will its blocking affect the Belarusian segment of the internet, will the users feel the absense of the access to the Belarusian Partisan?

- Now we need to say that we can be the next. All Belarusian independent journalists. We must fight for our colleagues. This is the first. This is a very disturbing call. This is a warning ball dropped to see what we will do.

In this situation, I repeat, we need a powerful reaction from our colleagues from other media.

Therefore, I urge everyone to express solidarity with the Belarusian Partisan today. You cannot stay away. Because I came across a situation when I was sent to prison in 2010, went out and was shocked. Because, in general, when our editor’s office was raided, and I was imprisoned in the KGB jail, and the arrest of our journalists caused no special reaction. That is, there was some reaction, but it was a one-time occurrence. But there was no powerful wave of solidarity due to the fact that the leading site was destroyed, that the editor-in-chief was in jail, that journalists were imprisoned and the site did not work. Such a feeling that there was a quiet joy: in general they got rid of the competitor.

We cannot let it happen again now, we need to fight for our colleagues. Because, guys, it won’t work any other way. You will be the next. If you think , like, the Charter’97 and the Belarusian Partisan presumed too far, and we will sit quietly at the background, then no. Trust me, you will come next! Because the repression is always growing, they want to strangulate more, more, more.

- The question is – how? Because all the Belarusian media without exceptions write about the Belarusian Partisan today. What else can be done int his situation to help?

- Continue - come out with street actions, picket the Ministry of Information, address to the Western partners, tell about this to HR defenders from all over the world, so that they would write statements on protests, address to their governments, demand reaction on that. Because this should be stopped. There are few of us already.

If Lukashenka, due to his stupidity or following the initiative of the special services, closes the last independent media today, we will lose the country – do you understand this? We will simply lose the country. Russian tanks and trucks with Russian soldiers will come in the night, and I don’t know what will happen to Lukashenka – maybe we will never wake up again. And that’s all, guys! What will we do without independent journalists?

- You mentioned international reaction. This year was very complicated for the journalists, even Belsat reporters got huge amounts of fines. Nevertheless, Lukashenka was invited to the Eastern Partnership Summit. How can this be explained?

- The leaders of the European states refused to meet with Lukashenka at the Eastern Partnership Summit. This is why he didn’t go there. Yes, formally he received the invitation, but they made it clear for him that he would be a pariah, that no politician would shake hands with him. That is why it was Makei who went there.

- Returning to more technical issues, the Charter'97 has the richest history of page blocking. Is it easy to bypass this block, and how can the Belarusian Partisan resume working?

- We now inform our readers on how to bypass the blocking of the independent media. This, indeed, is possible to do. No one will manage to fully strangle the freedom of speech, of course.

Surely, we will have to demand and we will continue to demand from the European Union and the United States an instant reaction to such things. Therefore, in the first place, if the Belarusian Partisan is not unblocked and the policy of pressure on independent media continues, then Lukashenka himself will suffer the most. Therefore, I would in his place think about what he does himself and what his special services are doing in this situation.

To finish on a positive note, taking this opportunity, I would like to congratulate the Belsat TV channel on its 10th anniversary, and the Charter'97 website on its 20th anniversary. We have been working for a long time and I am sure that we will continue our work.

- This is positive, of course. However, on the other hand, it’s a shame that the main topics on these portals and on Belsat remain unchanged. As the key topics are repressions, pressure on journalists. How do you think, how soon will this situation change?

- I always hope for the best, because I'm an optimist, and hope gives me strength to fight. There’s no need to be depressed, because our profession is interesting, our work is noble, our goals are also noble, we work for the people, we work for our country.

Struggle is a natural process in our situation. We must fight for our right to remain journalists, for our right to tell the truth about what is happening in the country. So, guys, everything is fine, we continue to fight. The main thing is not to fall into despair, to be solidary and go forward!

- Thank you very much for your comment and your position.

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