« It is better to be a dictator than to be gay »

These words were pronounced by Alexander Lukashenko, President of the Republic of Belarus, directly

The EU’s patience boiling-point

Once upon a time, there was Belarus and there was the European Union. Then came sanctions. Belarus i

Je t’aime, moi non plus

It is the title of the famous song by Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin that could best represent the

 

« It is better to be a dictator than to be gay »

March 22, 2012 in Political System

These words were pronounced by Alexander Lukashenko, President of the Republic of Belarus, directly referring to the German Minister of Foreign Affairs Guido Westerwelle, who openly assumes his homosexuality (1). Although this declaration is highly questionable and disrespectful, it is, unfortunately, neither exceptional nor unexpected. Indeed,this is not Lukashenko’s first homophobic statement. In 2004, he [...]

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The EU’s patience boiling-point

March 3, 2012 in Civil Society

Once upon a time, there was Belarus and there was the European Union. Then came sanctions. Belarus is a “silent emergency”. Developments in Lukashenko’s regime were very slow and very stable: no war, no threaten of any attack, the country keeps its isolation and no sense of urgency is felt in the rest of Europe [...]

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Je t’aime, moi non plus

February 20, 2012 in Civil Society, Foreign Affairs

It is the title of the famous song by Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin that could best represent the relations between Belarus and the EU. Between attraction and repulsion, between awe and suspicion, the two entities are far from being indifferent to one another, for better or worse. It started like the story of many [...]

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The Energy trap

January 27, 2012 in Foreign Affairs, Political System

If the success of the Belarusian state owned economy was sustained by the distortions in oil and gas prices, its dependency towards Russia, who controls directly the exploitation of these resources, was the fuel for the country’s economic decline revealing serious weaknesses and unbalances. 1. The Belarusian miracle During the end of the 90s and [...]

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European view on Belarus

January 19, 2012 in Civil Society

Русскую версию ищите tut! How interesting is Belarus for Europeans? This was the question held in mind by a group of students of European Affairs in Sciences Po Paris, who have been conducting for already three months a project dedicated to Belarus, “Бelarus Project”. To find the answer to this question, they have interviewed about [...]

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The economic crisis and external alliances

January 7, 2012 in Political System

Lukashenko’s answer to his greatest challenge The recent economic crisis affecting Belarus is considered one of the harshest. Inflation rates are astronomic, unemployment has been raising (1) and there are shortages of food and goods. The government is drown in debts and has difficulties in paying for its imports, as its currency is constantly devaluated. [...]

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Belarus: exception among “New Eastern Europe” countries?

December 27, 2011 in Comparative Cases

There is no universal model of democratic transition. Each Central and Eastern European communist country had its own experience of democratic consolidation defined by specific geopolitical and historical features. Today all these countries have pluralist regimes where political and human rights are respected and democracy seems to be irreversible. At the same time the only [...]

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Lukashenko : With or without you?

December 19, 2011 in Political System

In Belarus, a democratically elected president, Alexander Lukashenko, has been governing since 1994. He is seen as an experienced politician who applies various methods in order to fulfil its objective: to stick to power. Indeed, in the last few years, he has attracted the attention of the international community showing a unique leadership style. Recent [...]

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Europe’s (Far) East

December 11, 2011 in Civil Society

Belarus could have a lot more in common with Asia than we think. It is now beyond any doubt that Belarus and China share a similar point of view on human rights, as declared by the President of the Chinese Parliament during his visit in Minsk 1. What is more, it seems that the political [...]

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A (hi)story of Belarus

December 4, 2011 in Civil Society, Foreign Affairs

Did you say White Russian? It is commonly believed that the term Belarus – also because of its former name, “Belorussia” – comes from “белый” (bielyi), meaning white, and  “Русь” (Rus), meaning Russian. Well, if the intuition is correct for “white”, the issue with “Rus” is actually more complicated. Let’s see together why. If we [...]

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