Even cold weather helps Belarusian protests; Belarus plummeted in the safety rating among other countries; an investor, business angel and co-founder of the Angels BAND Belarus association, Valery Astrynski, was arrested for a white-red-white flag at his remote farmhouse; journalists are accused of transport traffic disruption; Fasel continues making excuses
17 January 2021 | BYHelp-Mediagroup
Source: t.me/nashaniva
Despite the –20°C temperatures, Belarusians have still participated in the traditional marches of neighbors
From early morning until late evening groups of protesters appeared in various districts of Minsk. The marches were also held in the village of Barauliany, Navahrudak, Barysau and Rakau.
Belarusians are actively using all possible forms of protest. In a large shopping center in Minsk people chanted “Long Live Belarus”, residents of one of the Minsk courtyards recited a poem by the Belarusian classic Yanka Kupala in unison, residents of the Ushod district in Minsk organized a flash mob of the paper figures, and residents of the town of Rechytsa joined a dance marathon.
Thanks to severe cold weather Belarusians managed to organize a flash mob of white-red-white boiling water salutes.
Several dozen detainees have been reported. One of them is Anastasiya Kalashnikava, a paramedic of an ambulance team, multiple champion and prize-winner of the Belarusian Muay Thai and kickboxing championship and international tournaments. Anastasiya was detained near the Pushkinskaya metro station by the Aliaksandr Taraikouski’s memorial.
Source: t.me/nashaniva
Rallies of solidarity with Belarusians also happened abroad. Belarusian diasporas of Germany, Ukraine, Poland, Italy, Russia and other countries, as always, came out in support of the Belarusians who had been fighting Lukashenko regime for almost six months.
Source: t.me/belamova
Belarus dropped from 16th to 114th place in the world safety rating
Belarus plummeted from 16th to 114th place in the countries’ safety rating. It became known from the data released by the Numbeo service for 2021 which compares the safety index for all countries of the world.
In 2019 and 2020, Belarus ranked 16th in the countries’ safety rating. But at the beginning of 2021, Belarus lost 98 positions at once and dropped to the 114th place. And we should take into consideration the fact that in 2019 there were only 118 countries in the ranking, while previously there have been 129.
Belarus is preceded by Zimbabwe and the Dominican Republic (112th and 113th places respectively), and is immediately followed by Kenya and Libya (115th and 116th places). Belarus’ current ranking is the worst among European countries.
The investor, business angel, and co-founder of the Angels BAND Belarus association, Valery Astrynski, was detained for a displaying a flag at his own remote cabin
His wife informed the public about his arrest through Facebook.
“Since yesterday evening Valery has been at the Iwye police office. He is being fed, he got warm clothes, and his court hearing will take place in Iwye on Monday. Here’s the background to the story. Since the summertime, a flag with Pahonia [‘pursuit’ coat of arms] has been hanging on the well of our farmhouse. It wasn’t in anyone’s way, as the farm is far from everyone, surrounded by forest, and the village is out of the way. We arrived on Friday evening with our children to spend the weekend at the farmhouse. At 8am Saturday the police arrived. The police told us they were obliged to respond as there was a complaint from a local resident (a couple of elderly people and a farm). They drew up a report. If it was just Pahonia it would be ok. But the white-red-white background is not allowed. They filed it as an unauthorized one-man protest. They told us to wait for a phone call summoning us to the court in Iwye.
“At 9:30 pm on Saturday our family was watching a movie and noticed headlights flashing outside (this is a rare for where we are). And immediately after somebody knocked on the door. The same police officers showed up at the door, apologized and said that there had been a change of plans and their superiors gave an order to make an arrest. Take your things and let’s get moving.”
Valery is the father of three sons and one of the most prominent IT-investors and business angels. He is in the TOP-200 of the most successful and influential businessmen in Belarus according to the Ezhednevnik newspaper.
Source: t.me/kyky_org
Journalists arrested two months ago are considered guilty of disrupting transport traffic
Belsat journalists Katsiaryna Andreyeva and Darya Chultsova are accused of causing damage to Minsktrans in the amount of 11,500 Belarusian rubles (3,600 euros). They allegedly actively directed and participated in “group activities that grossly violated public order” which resulted in the disruption of public transport traffic effecting thirteen bus, three trolleybus and three tram routes.
The journalists have been detained since 15 November. They were arrested during a live broadcast near the Square of Changes when thousands of people came to express their grief after the murder of Raman Bandarenka.
Source: TUT.BY
Rene Fasel continues to make excuses and promises to announce the verdict on the Ice Hockey World Championship on 18 January
The President of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), Rene Fasel, gave an interview to the Russian TASS news agency about the Ice Hockey World Championship in Belarus and his meeting with Lukashenko on 11 January.
Here are some quotes.
“Earlier you said that the decision on the location of the World Championship may be announced next week. Is that really the case?”
“Yes, the IIHF council will be held on 18 January. It is possible we are able to make a final decision on that day. But it might happen that we will need a little more time.”
“But the statements of the sponsors may have an impact on the final decision of IIHF.”
“Yes, they may. But not just that. As I said earlier, we are under a lot of political pressure. We knew that a week before our visit to Minsk the Belarusian Sports Fund [Belarusian Sport Solidarity Foundation] wrote letters to the sponsors of the IIHF urging them not to support the championship and boycott it. Therefore, we have serious problems both with the sponsors and on the political side of things.”
“Were you ready for such a reaction from the European media to your photo with Lukashenko?”
“I have known Alexander Lukashenko for over 20 years. I played hockey with him and judged matches with his participation. I think that everything was fine. But some people took it as though I was taking Belarus and Lukashenko’s side. And this is politics. We know about the situation in Belarus. It is very sad when politics gets mixed up with sports. It makes me very upset and sad that it has happened. We will have conversations with the organizers, the Belarusian Ice Hockey Federation, sponsors, the IIHF Council, and our marketing partner. We signed a contract to hold this competition. It’s not that simple. I am very sorry that people do not understand that sports should be beyond politics. But these are the new realities. The world is changing.”
“The IIHF is now caught in the crossfire. On the one hand, there is political pressure, and on the other, the likelihood of large financial losses due to the transfer of the tournament from Minsk. How do you personally feel about it?”
“I agree that political and financial pressures are being felt. I think it will be very difficult to hold the tournament in Minsk.”
For more information on the events of 17 January 2021, please visit Infocenter Free Belarus 2020:
