"Ryhoravich, just Resign"

Mad man is advised to calm down.

After mass "marches of non-spongers" this spring the authority got a short break for summer. Any adequate politician would try not to stir the "hive" of popular discontent. But as the Latin proverb says: "whom God wishes to destroy, he first makes mad." Lukashenka himself said that on October 1 the decree on "spongers" would be returned.

"Why did he do this? Does he make any sense?". Coordinator of the Belarusian National Congress (BNC) Yury Novikau asked questions of Charter97.org:

- It is really strange given events of spring-2017, when the entire Belarus, not only Minsk, bristled. The country was on the verge of the revolution. And now, like losing consciousness, he falls into the same trap twice.

Only a madman can do this! A madman who does not want to calm down. Probably he has been pushing since the spring and believes that his pride was hurt by our protest actions. We should come out and help him to calm down. An adequate person will not say and do such things, especially at the state level.

- Let's pretend that there are some personal reasons and emotions. However, he has some councelors, the Administration, a whole bunch of "economic persons". Could they give him a piece of advice?

- I guess they could but didn't want to... Most likely, the boss being short-minded has decided that the revival of the fee will wash away all economic problems. Lukashenka does not know where to take money from to support his hangers-on.

We should keep in mind that he is the most afraid of economically independent people. Those who are considered "spongers" are independent people who earn money either in other countries or without being officially employed.

This is a huge fighting swath. They can't be "caught by the throat" with contracts as workers at factories and inspections as entrepreneurs. They can destroy and overthrow the system built for 23 years. This is the greatest fear of the dictator.

- How soon can new protests occur?

- As soon as new "letters of happiness" are sent out. It will be interesting. This autumn protest actions will rise again.

- The dictator was predicted a hot autumn earlier, when it became known that the IMF had curtailed negotiations with the authorities on allocation of a loan, and the national debt had reached the all-time high. How does the economic crisis show itself in your region? What do people say? What are their sentiments?

"People no longer believe TV screens and "pipe dreams" of propaganda. People believe their eyes. And eyes will not lie: the situation in Mahilyou, as well as in Belarus as a whole, has not improved since the spring. It has just deteriorated. It is extremely hard to find a job, salaries are miserables, prices for essentials grow and this autumn they will drastically increase.

We can observe the way ill economic policy of higher officials affect our lives. Every day we can see how sevices and products increase in price. People now live on credit.

There are many other problems besides this stupid decree. And then another act of insanity (the new decree on "spongers") drops from the clouds.

- Perhaps somewhere in a Drazdy bunker, Aliaksandr Ryhoravich reads Charter97.org to understand what his opponents think. What is your message on the eve of autumn-2017?

- I would say him to stop fighting the moonlight. If you can not give people anything good, just go away and give people freedom and the opportunity to earn money themselves. Don't put pressure on us. If your mind is sick a bit, don't do it with others.