Vytis Jurkonis: Expectations Of Reforms In Belarus Under Lukashenka Are Vain

That’s the reason why there is nothing out of the ordinary in the incident which had taken place in the court of Frunzenski district of Minsk.

In this way a Lithuanian political analyst, lecturer at the Institute of International Relations and Political Science of Vilnius University Vytis Jurkonis has commented to charter97.org on the beating up of three persons in the court during the trial over graffiti artists.

“There is nothing out of the ordinary in the beating up of the three guys, including a journalist, during the graffiti case court session. It’s a pity, but it is like that. Human rights activists could remind you that there have been no systemic reforms in Belarus, so expectations are vain, even if somebody had had ones. Certain oppositionists are going to say that the regime would not be changed by that. And they will be right according to this criterion,” – he said.

According to Vytis Jurkonis, this incident won’t change the current EU policy towards the Belarusian regime.

“All supporters of the dialogue and rapprochement may rest assured that it would not change the overall course of the EU, as the denial to investigate the cases of the disappeared opponents of the regime, numerous cases of battery, arrests and other kinds of persecution of dissenters and even the falsified elections have not changed that,” – he believes.

The political analyst has also attracted attention to another issue – how this incident is to be received by the Belarusian society.

“Another, even a more serious question probably is, whether any resentment is to emerge in the Belarusian society, or whether it is to be taken as a normal practice? Or are people to confine themselves to a few likes and statements on Facebook? That’s the answer for you – should people expect something from Brussels or not, while indifference and are losing strategy are dominating Belarus,” – the political analyst concluded.