opposition newspapers available

[snert]

I was in the Orbita Hotel in Minsk recently (April 2005), and was
surprised to see a stack of "Belarus Today" newspapers on the counter at
the registration desk, for distribution. A different issue of this
weekly paper was there on the following week. Included in one issue was
extensive coverage of the Independence Day demonstrations in Minsk on
March 25, 2005. Other articles in the papers were openly critical of
the government.
Everything I'd read on the websites of the various opposition groups led
me to believe that this sort of publication was not available in
modern-day Belarus. I should point out a couple of things though: The
Orbita is a hotel not usually visited by native Belarussians; the
newspaper is in English, not Belarussian/Russian.
This begs the question then: Is the government not concerned, tacitly
encouraging/permitting, or simply not aware? Is this the opening
barrage of "letting a hundred flowers bloom", or simply an oversight?

Just curious. Mike

[Sum of Stresses]

Mike,
That's just great what you wrote! You are absolutely right, one can
buy a number of opposition newspapers at any news-stand in Minsk, and
any other Belorussian city. Some of them are extremely critical of the
government. And yet, according to our right-wing opposition and their
right-wing friends in Washington we live in a society of brutal
dictatorship where such things as freedom of speech do not exist.
So, to answer your question, the government is aware, is concerned
sometimes, I suppose, but either this society is democratic enough, or
this government isn't dictatorial enough to prosecute free press. Don't
get me wrong, I have never been apologist of Lukashenko and his regime.
They are kind of authoritarian, they cross the line sometimes, they are
more of populists than I would want them to be. But I wouldn't call it
"dictatorship", and they have popular support. Therefore, as a
Belorussian citizen I'm more indignant at the current Washington stance
towards Belarus, at the anti-Belorusssian propaganda, and at the lies
that our provocative "patriotic" (really anti-Belorussian) right-wing
opposition spreads.
Visit us again sometimes, and you will see more! :-)

[o***@nettkjenning.com]

I can see your point when you suggest that Belarus is not a
dictatorship in the traditional sense. As Putin regime in Russia,
Ukrain before the last dramatic election and Milosovich former regime
in Serbia, two regimes Belarus have a lot in common with, it is may be
more correct to use the concept democraureship. In a democrateship,
soviet totalitarism is mixed with liberal staffage. All power is
centalzed in the hands of the "president", but at the same time weak
parlaments, illegitimately edited laws and constitutions pseudo-free
press and a pseudo-free market economy.

Belarus is definately a bit differnet when it comes to both the total
dominance of the state owned economy and the undulged appraisal of the
soviet political and economic system, the undulged control and
brutality of the police and intelligence serivices (there are at leat
9. different branches of intelligense service in Belarus and no other
European contry has as many plicemen per inhabitant as Belarus) and -
with all due respect - the lack of intelligence of the "president"

The distinction between a dictatorship and democratorship, is never the
less important. A way many Bealusans describe the differense is that
the "president" and his apparatsi, and the rest of the society is
virtually two different coexisting realities. As long as you not
exersise the democratic right of having an political oponion with the
motive of establishing a political movement or publish a newspaper, are
prosecuted by the police and "courts" or run a business of a size that
it gets the attention from Lukashenkas apparatsi, those two realities
are unlikely to interfere with eachother and your daily life is not to
different from a democratic society.

What you write about the free press is at best unnuanced, more likely
compleate bullshit, at worst a shere lie.

The biggest pro-regime newpaper was in 2003, printed in 500000 copies,
while the total number of copies of all oppositional newspapers was
300000. The taxlevel of indipendent newspapers are the doble for
independents newpapers compared with pro-regime newspapers. All
distribution of newspapers is done through a state owned campany that
takes 4-5 times as much to distribute independent as state owned
newspapers. It is very difficult for independent newspapers to sell
adverisements, because all companies that advertise in independent
newspapers is visited by a special tax police branch of the
intelligence service or otherwise risk troubles with the authorities.

The same system applises if one wants to start an independent union or
organization. To do that you need registration. In order to be
registered you need an adress. But few landlords dares to take the risk
to accept independent organization, because they can be very sure that
they will get a visit from the quite facination tax-police branch of
the intelligence service. In 2003 such a registration also costed 150
dollars, and that is the same amount as a PhD doctor working on a
state hospital as a specialist earns a month in 2005.

As fast as you have registered you can of course also expect the
tax-police on the door. It is no surprise that many independent
newspapers and organizations finds it as a better alternative to work
outside the democraturic laws borders.

When it comes to encouragement to visit the country again, I absolutely
agree with you. As foreigner in Belarus you will be fine (read: not
come in contact with the coexisting reality of "president" Ljukasjenka
and his aparatsis) as long as you stay out of political demonstrations
and jaywalking. If you should happen to be in Belarus on the day of a
political demnstration you will probably see so much police that you
have never seen before in your life, but if you stick to the two simple
rules above you are very unlikely to get into any trouble.

Best regards,

Jan

[Sum of Stresses]

Jan,
I'm glad you see the point in what I was trying to say. What for
you is most likely a mere curiosity, for me is a reality of everyday
life. This reality is being greatly misrepresented by Western media. I
wouldn't care too much about the misrepresentation if it wasn't simply
threatening under present geopolitical conditions. People living on
territories of the former USSR are facing cultural and phisical
extermination. I wouldn't care too much about subtleties in the
definition of "dictatorship" or the meaning of word "free" in "free
press". I wouldn't, if it wasn't crucial for my freedom and life
itself.
"The West" today is a threat, because the West lies and then bombs.
This is my opinion, and I earned this opinion, my experience and my
destiny leaded to it. Who does "the West" lie to? First of all, to its
own citizens. "Brutal dictatorship" and "Authoritarian government" -
subtle difference, subtle lie, but we've learned very well how such lie
can result in killing of hundreeds of thousand people by NATO or
American bombs.
Read Mike's message again. He went to Minsk, he must have read
something before he did, and what he learned about the country from the
Western media? What was available to him? How come he is sincerely
surprised to find an opposition newspaper in Minsk? It is not
circulation of the newspaper he talks about, it's the fact itself -
public criticism of "bloody Lukashenko regime" exists???
Also, some of the points you made are very interesting. I used to
publish independent magazine in Minsk. I am not aware of any special
"taxlevels" for independent press. Could you elaborate on that?
Nobody prosecutes advertisers who buy advertisement space in
indipendent newspapers - I have never heard of that. What is your
source of information? I know our advertisers - they prefer to pay
publishers that have better circulation or better local reach. Why
opposition press has lower circulation than the press owned by the
government? Differnt question. Why independent Amercican media has
lower circulation and its audience is thousand times smaller than the
audience of the corporate media? I find the "circulation" argument
unconvincing. Government is not expected to support opposition press
and it never does.
Also, what do you mean by "special tax police branch of the
intelligence service"? Never heard of such thing.
I said it earlier and I can repeat it now - I have always had very
low opinion of Lukashenko regime. But my opinion of the "democratizers
of Belarus" is even lower. Even for the sake of "liberating" country
from Lukashenko, I can not consolidate with political forces driven by
neo-conservative ultra-right agenda and supported by American
superpower. It is the specificity of the moment that leaves us with no
other choice. People interested in Belarus must recognize that this
position is a typical sentiment present in Byelorussians society today.
We are forced to chose lesser of two evils.

[o***@nettkjenning.com]

To start with some clarifications about my primary sources.

Aage Storm Borchrevink: Eurostories (Published in Norway 2003) and
Kjell Albin Abrahamson: Vitryssland, 89 milimeter från Europa (Belarus
- 89 millimeters from Europe, published in Sweden 2000).

Borchrevink writes from his visits in Belarus as a member of the
Norwegian Helskinki commitee. Abrahamson in a Swedish correspondent in
Belarus. Unfortunately, as far as I know both books are only available
in Norwegian/Sweden. Both agian refer to a lot of different sources.

When it coms to your question about the Belarusan intelligence service,
Borchrevink sources is a western military attache in Minsk that was
aware of 6 branches, a KGB source that told him about 8 different
sources (KGB, the homedepartments' security service, the frontier
guards' security service, the "president's" security service, the tax
police, the treasury police and the prosecuters' investigation unit. He
added that a lot of unofficial groups and networks somewhere in between
the official services and crimanal networks can be added to the list.

Founded on this sources one can argue that it is 6 or more different
services. Either way, I find this as remarkably many branches.

More interesting is precense of intelligence services that one in the
west is not used to regard as intelligence services, for instance the
tax police. The explaination about the attention some indepndent
newspapers have got from the the tax police (this story is backed up by
independent investigations by the Helsinki Commitee) and the fact that
any big business in the CIS as a rule of thumb is involved in organized
crime and corruption, visualizes why there is such branches.

I don't have an answer on why you have not received such a visit. Some
possible expalinations is that you are one of the independent
newspapers that work outside the law, something that is relatively
widespread because of the undemocratic regulations. Another possible
explaination is that the magazine that "you used to publish" (that has
to mean that for some reason you don't publish it anymore - why?)
wasn't of much interest for the authorites. Say it was about the
Belarusans passion for mushroms. I assume that would be of less
interest for the authorities than say, a newspaper that wrote about
oppositional politicians that have dissepeard under suscpet
circumstances, probably killed by the KGB or other of Ljukashenkas
intelligence services (Borchevink is farily close to document that this
do happen in his book). A third possible explaination is that this is
only one of many ways the authorites works in order to close
independent newspapers and other media. It is for instance well known
that there is a tendency that oppositional websites all of a sudden is
replaced by porn or that independent newspapers or organizations
experience shocks in the electricity supply so that their PC equipment
is ruined. A forth possibility is that what he tells us he has
experienced is complete bullshit, but I don't think so. Do you?

I have first hand information that desk clerks at hotels is obliged to
report directly to the KGB if any foreigner approach them, suggesting
that they make any arrangements that is not bu the book for instance to
register a visa for more nights than you actually stay at the hotel. As
you know most hotels, like any other business in Belarus is directly
controlled by the Lukashenka regime.

When it comes to your critisism of the US, I don't feel that I have to
answer for that. I am not American, I don't back up any of my
suggestions by American official sources and I don't suggest that I
support American policy when it comes to Belarus. The very assumption
that I advocate American foreign policy because I critisice the regime
of Belarus on principal reasons is a Neo-Soviet "anti fasistic wall"
rhetorics, that visualizes the ideology and propaganda of the current
regime in Belarus.

I assume that the English newspaper that you refer to is "Belarus
today", true? If that is so, they have published an article about Pjotr
Chernomorets who wanted to discuss the future of the TV channel
"channel 8" with Ljukashenka, a channel that I have the understanding
that was closed a couple of years ago by the authorities. Isn't it true
that over time the number of independent organizations, newspapers and
other media, private enterprises and independent schools (for instance
belarusian or Jewish schools) becoming less and less as a consequense
of the policy from the authorities that they want to control the
eduation system, the media, organizations and the economy? An CIS
example from Russia is that according to my Russian freinds they can
not buy Anna Politkovskayas books in Russia, but will receive them if I
send the books to them by mail (if you think of it this is a very good
example of the difference of a dictatorship and a democratorship, or if
you prefere democlature;)

I partly agree when it comes to your analysis of the current situation.
Partly because independent obersers regard the election as not a free
and fair election. They do regard Ljukashenka as the real winner of the
first election where he came to power though. The very reason for this
is normally explained with that Ljukashenkas policies of soviet
nostalgia and union with Russia plans have greater support in Belarus
than most other CIS countries.

As in many of the other CIS countries one of the main problems with
regard to the distorbing negative political development is that people
look upon politics as a nature cathastophe you can not do anything
about, rather than something you can change and that can make a
difference for your future. That people do stand up and maje changes in
neighbourning countries ike Georgia and Ukrain and that young people
aproach me to tell their opinion on matters as the Ljukashenka regime
(Belarus) and the Chechenya war (Russia), proves that it is possible to
make changes and that the younger generation does not follow in the
current athorities neo-nomenclature footsteps though. Meet up at
Spotivnaya Metro station in St petersburg or Akademya Navuk in Minsk
(there are lot's of similar meetingpoint in other CIS cities) to get an
example.

Jan

[Sum of Stresses]

Jan,
I guess I am confused by the way you use expression "intelligence
service". The definition of intelligence service is: "a unit
responsible for gathering and interpreting information about an enemy".
So, in Belarus, the KGB would be called an intelligence service. But I
wasn't aware of a "tax branch" of KGB. There is an economic crime
department of the police. But police is not an intelligence service.
Anyway, it's just a matter of terms...
I did not express any assumptions regarding your nationality or whether
or not you "advocate American foreign policy" . But that's the reality
of political life in the post-USSR space, and in Belarus especially. So
called "democratic" parties are always right-wing, ultra-conservative,
having close political ties with the rightmost wing of the US
Republican party. Ukranian "orange" populists are exception - they
chiefly cooperate with Democrates in the States. As a matter of fact,
the most prominent advocate of the "Belorussian democracy" was (and
still remains) former US Senator Jesse Helms. Belarus Democracy Act is
his child. You know what kind of figure this man is, don't you? So, I
have no idea what your political views are, but I know exactly what are
political views of the most prominent opposition parties in Belarus.
Even for me, who never supported Lukashenko, he is the lesser of two
evils. Real problem here is lack of independent political opposition.
Ukraine, Georgia?.. I'm not impressed....
I find it sad but also ironic, that all the neighbouring countries
around Belarus today are involved in the wars. Makes you think, doesn't
it? I am glad I don't live in Poland or Latvia, or Ukraine. Having an
authoritarian jerk-Lukashenko for a president is a lesser blow to my
national identity than it would be in case if my country was an
American errand-boy. I think, this is a typical Belorussian sentiment
in this days.
I don't know what happened to Channel 8, I lived in the States at that
time.
You friends in Moskow may try to order Politkowskaja book from this
site http://www.ozon.ru/context/detail/id/1276517/ It's Russian on-line
book store. As far as I know, the book has never been banned or
anything, but only 5000 copies had been printed, and it was 2 years
ago, so, no wonder it is hard-to-find book.

[snert]

Well, I never knew I'd create such a storm by my somewhat innocuous and
naive posting about the availability of opposition newspapers, but now
i'm encouraged to weigh into the fray again. As i mentioned in my early
post, my initial impression was created by reading some of the
opposition sites on the web. Since returning to the USA last month, I
read in our local press that the USA is going to spend a few million
supporting some of those groups in the next fiscal year. I presume this
is general knowledge among Belarussian readers of those web sites. Now
for the second question: are those opposition sites viewed as the
spirit of Belarussian independence, or as shills for American hegemony,
or as some other creature that i haven't imagined. I realize there may
be several answers to my question, and it's not intended to be a troll
or flamebait. It's just me trying to figure out a little more about
this most interesting country in the former cis. Lest anyone think that
i'm just another provocateur, i'll tell you that during my visit to
Belarus, my activities weren't political; I visited several new
restaurants with my friends, went to a birthday party, rode the train
into the country and visited a very small village where a retired
relative of my friends lives, shopped for tshirts and souvenirs, and
bought a nice picture book in a bookstore, as well as some "Tom and
Jerry", and Mickey Mouse" cartoon books to take back to my classroom in
the school where i work as a volunteer aide. The kids in my classroom
loved the comic books, and marveled that Mickey and Donald spoke Russian.
As usual, when i spoke to the children (as well as to adults) about
where I'd been, I had to get the world map out and point to Belarus.
It's not well-known here. But in fairness, how many Belarussians know
much about Ohio?
Greetings from sunny Ohio.
Mike

[Sum of Stresses]

Mike,
You brought up a very good point - not many Byelorussians know
anything about Ohio (not that sunny in the winter, by the way :-) ). I
actually think, that if they knew more, the current political
opposition in Belarus would have even fewer supporters than it has now.
But at the same time people could learn more about the history of
Amercan democracy, about the genuine lust for freedom that once created
that country. And also about the dead end where this drive for freedom
is now.
Current American policy towards Belarus is shaped by the
neocons. But Byelorussians don't even know who is who in the USA
policies. Belosrussians know that Congress approved "Belarus Democracy
Act", but nobody knows who is Jesse Helms - the man who conceived and
promoted that Act. As a matter of fact, I find Lukashenko's propaganda
very ineffective when they talk about American imperialism. They could
do better.
There is a huge difference though in the consequences that
mutual ignorance may have. For the USA Belarus is just a spare coin the
geopolitical game against already destroyed Russia. For Byelorussians,
American ignorance can mean national tragedy, military intervention,
death of hundreed of thousands. Sounds a bit hysterical? No, this is a
mere reaction to what happened in Yugoslavia, Afganistan and Iraq.
I can't answer your question about "opposition sites", because
I don't know which sites you were referring to. I noticed that the most
prominent source of information for English speakers is
www.charter97.org. In my opinion this site is a worst anti-Byelorussian
propaganda outlet that money can buy. They are not fair in judgements,
they are not clear in argument, they rarely report facts (even selected
facts), they apply double standards to everything, they simply don't
make sense most of the times.
The fear of American "threat", I think, is one source of an
average Byelorussan's political sentiment. The other source is the
feeling of humiliated national pride caused be representation of
Belarus in media, lies and double standards applied to us. Belarus is
misrepresented in the Western political discourse and manipulated in
Western political practices. Of course we should blame ourselves for
the misrepresentation. But at this point it's too late to blame
anybody. We already on the radar of the neo-hawks. Kondoleesa already
marked the targets on the map.
According to http://www.freedomhouse.org. Belarus has next
to the lowest possible level of freedom in the society. I was curious
enought to try to reproduce their estimate based on their published
methodology. I was very strong on "Lukashenko's regime", but still I
couldn't reproduce the numbers Freedom House published for Belarus. As
a matter of fact, I got the exact same numbers that Freedom House
published in 1995. I think our society is as (partly) free today as it
was in 1995. Why Freedom House spices up reports? Because Freedom House
is not free itself. And also because from the list of the sources they
used for compiling report none was Byelorussian source, neither
official, no opposotion.
Do we have problems in the society? Yes. Do we want it to make it
better? Yes. Is it "dictatorship"? No. Do we want American support for
our democracy? No. No. No.

[o***@nettkjenning.com]

Post by Sum of Stresses
Jan,
I guess I am confused by the way you use expression "intelligence
service". The definition of intelligence service is: "a unit
responsible for gathering and interpreting information about an enemy".
So, in Belarus, the KGB would be called an intelligence service. But I
wasn't aware of a "tax branch" of KGB.

First, it is not a branch of KGB, the _former_KGB_source_ reports that
there is such and such branches of _intel-ligenceservices_. That you
didn't know this is fair and square. Intelligence services tends to
work and organize in a manner that ensures their existence and methods
is not widely known by the public.

Post by Sum of Stresses
There is an economic crime
department of the police. But police is not an intelligence service.
Anyway, it's just a matter of terms...
From what you say one can get the impression that Belarus has a normal

lawsystem and that there is a clear distiction between police,
intelligence service and criminals. First, that is simply not the case.
The minut the reality of ordinary inhabitants of Belarus and the
reality of Ljukashenka and his aparatsi interacts, for instance as a
result of anyone wants to start up a human rights organisation, run for
president, publish a regime-critical newspaper or set up a private
enterprice of a certain size, this is selfevident. As event though, is
that as long as one does not intervene with the Ljukashenka-sfere in
any way, the Belarusan society will appear like a next-to-normal
democracy or an alternative governance form wanted by the population.
This is the very nature of the democratorship or democlature, as could
also be as desreptive a concept;)

Post by Sum of Stresses
I did not express any assumptions regarding your nationality or whether
or not you "advocate American foreign policy" . But that's the reality
of political life in the post-USSR space, and in Belarus especially. So
called "democratic" parties are always right-wing, ultra-conservative,
having close political ties with the rightmost wing of the US
Republican party. Ukranian "orange" populists are exception - they
chiefly cooperate with Democrates in the States.

I am simply amused by how you guys simply can not let go of
Soviet-propaganda stating that any oppositional movement is American
infiltration. What happened in Ukrain, was that the guy who received
most votes through a fair election - after a long fight and a lot of
attempts to manipulate the process -
won. That is a 100% undeputable fact. What is more, is that there is
no consparicy of American right wing exteremists visiting the entire
world's (at least the CIS states) elections in order to manipulate the
population to vote for the populistic advocat of the American
Republician party that is running for president in all over CIS and
Europe.

That said, I have no problem with seing a lot of negative traits of
American foreign policy. Being the defenders of a facist regime and
infiltrating all elections in the CIS is just not 2 of them.

Post by Sum of Stresses
Even for me, who never supported Lukashenko, he is the lesser of two
evils. Real problem here is lack of independent political opposition.

When it comes to the lack of a robust political opposition you are
obviously right. Opositional politicians of Belarus has obviously
wasted the few chances they have had for creating a better future for
the people of Belarus, by not being willing to work together for the
best of the country. What is worth it seams like many of them profities
on status quo - rather than democratic change - because they virtually
make their living of foregin support as a result of herassment by the
Ljukashenka regime.

When it comes to your forgiveable attitude against Ljukashenka you
really should be ashamed of yourself. In addition to let his people
live in poverty, he herasses and executes political opponents. This is,
despite the difficulties with documenting such acts of the intelligent
services, so well documentet that you can regard it as an undesputable
fact.

Post by Sum of Stresses
Ukraine, Georgia?.. I'm not impressed....
I find it sad but also ironic, that all the neighbouring countries
around Belarus today are involved in the wars. Makes you think, doesn't
it? I am glad I don't live in Poland or Latvia, or Ukraine. Having an
authoritarian jerk-Lukashenko for a president is a lesser blow to my
national identity than it would be in case if my country was an
American errand-boy.

First, it is an offence to adress him as president. He is at best
"president".

Second, I take your statements more as a manifistation of suspicion
towards Poland and Lithaunia, than as a likely outcome of the foreign
policy of a democratic Belarus. From earlier and current historic
experience when it comes to Polish foreign policy towards Belarus and
the US and the often arrogant attitude among Poles towards Belarusans,
I find such a suspiciuos attitude agains Poland understandable and to a
large extent justified. According to the sources I have read, and
regard as reliable, it is much more likely that a independent and
demicratic Belarus, differnet from Poland, will be neutral than a
NATO-member.

That said, from my own experience from meeting many different people in
both Russia and Belarus, backed also by reliable independent sources,
the homo sovieticus thinking of such a great part of the population
(including the authorities in both contries) is as least a big a
problem as the spoiled baby who cries until he gets it his way (read:
Ljukashenka). A large part of the population simply still think like
homo sovieticus, not Belarusans or Russians. I find the ideological
thinking more apparent in Belarus cappuchino-communistic regime, while
the virtually never ending stories of what that is going to happen with
the great Russian empire is more apparent in Russia. In both countries
though, the youth can not wait to tell me how much they despite the
autorities of their own country. That should mean, that it will be only
a matter of time until the homo sovieticus dies out and the democratic
changes will occur.

Jan

[Alex Persky]

Post by o***@nettkjenning.com
I can see your point when you suggest that Belarus is not a
dictatorship in the traditional sense. As Putin regime in Russia,
Ukrain before the last dramatic election and Milosovich former regime
in Serbia, two regimes Belarus have a lot in common with, it is may be
more correct to use the concept democraureship. In a democrateship,
soviet totalitarism is mixed with liberal staffage. All power is
centalzed in the hands of the "president", but at the same time weak
parlaments, illegitimately edited laws and constitutions pseudo-free
press and a pseudo-free market economy.

Not exactly. Belarussian Parliament is completely controlled by the
"president", all elections are falsified by proper people of the
"president", the free press and the free market are as much free as the
"president" permits them. If not the democratic traditions raised at the
time of democracy in Belarus, in three years since 1991, there would be no
such issue as free press in Belarus either.

[o***@nettkjenning.com]

Post by Alex Persky

Post by o***@nettkjenning.com
I can see your point when you suggest that Belarus is not a
dictatorship in the traditional sense. As Putin regime in Russia,
Ukrain before the last dramatic election and Milosovich former regime
in Serbia, two regimes Belarus have a lot in common with, it is may be
more correct to use the concept democraureship. In a democrateship,
soviet totalitarism is mixed with liberal staffage. All power is
centalzed in the hands of the "president", but at the same time weak
parlaments, illegitimately edited laws and constitutions pseudo-free
press and a pseudo-free market economy.

Not exactly. Belarussian Parliament is completely controlled by the
"president", all elections are falsified by proper people of the
"president", the free press and the free market are as much free as the
"president" permits them. If not the democratic traditions raised at the
time of democracy in Belarus, in three years since 1991, there would be no
such issue as free press in Belarus either.

Isn't this more or less what I am saying? I definied a dectatorship as
"soviet totalitarism mixed with liberal staffage". Without "the liberal
staffage" there would be no oppositional candidates in the election, no
newspapers that was as free as the "president" permits them, not to
mention no discussion whether or not there is an independent press or
opposition among Belarusians - both sides in the arguments insists they
know how the political situation in the country *really* are.

Jan

[Alex Persky]

Post by snert
Everything I'd read on the websites of the various opposition groups led
me to believe that this sort of publication was not available in
modern-day Belarus.
This begs the question then: Is the government not concerned, tacitly
encouraging/permitting, or simply not aware? Is this the opening
barrage of "letting a hundred flowers bloom", or simply an oversight?

The government is fully aware of these newspapers. The answer is that these
are only the newspapers that are relatively permitted to express their
views. However you cannot find a slightest critics of the government on
Belorussian TV or on Belorussian radio. Never ever. Private TV channels and
private radio stations are either not permitted in Belarus or closed because
they might express such views. Thus the influence on the listener by the
government's TV and radio and by the newspapers cannot be even compared.