Foreign Policy: Putin may not be the only huilo near Ukraine's borders

The people of Ukraine should remember about it.

Foreign Policy magazine (the USA) published Reid Standish's article about Ukrainian and Belarusian fans who got arrested last week after a football match in Barysau.

“You can drink at a soccer game, you can fight at one, and you can certainly swear at one -- just don't get political. That's the message that Belarus's government sent on Friday when the local KGB fined and arrested soccer fans at a qualifying match between Ukraine and Belarus for the 2016 European Championship after they a sang a song comparing Russian President Vladimir Putin to a very sensitive part of the male anatomy,” the author writes.

The journalist describes how Ukrainian and Belarusian fans sang the “Putin huilo” song together and exchanges chants “Glory to Ukraine” and “Long love Belarus” and writes how it ended.

“The majority of the detained fans were later released, but eight Ukrainians were placed under arrest for 10 days, 12 local fans were slapped with a $50 fine, and four Ukrainians were given fines of $140. The charges vary from hooliganism to the use of foul language,” he writes.

According to Reid Standish, the incident in Barysau shows Lukashenka's attitude towards the country's southern neighbour.

“Belarus' strongman president, Aleksandr Lukashenko, has become surprisingly popular among Ukrainians for his critical statements about Putin's actions in eastern Ukraine and Russia's annexation of Crimea in March,” he writes. “But despite Lukashenko's criticisms of Putin's actions abroad, at home he bears a strong resemblance to the Russian president. In power since 1994, Lukashenko has sought to eliminate all political opposition to his rule. Following protests over vote rigging in Belarus's 2010 presidential election, the government unleashed a massive political crackdown, and the autocratic president has been wary of all forms of opposition ever since -- even the seemingly apolitical. Political activists have often used creative ways, such as clapping and singing songs to show dissent, and authorities in Minsk have been quick to quell anything that could be a symbol of protest.

Ukraine won the match 2-0, but the incident should be a firm reminder to Ukrainians that Putin may not be the only huilio sharing a border with their country.”

Photo: Reuters