Surprising Similarity

Aliaksandr Lukashenka seems to adopt the best practices of the Russian prime minister.

So, discussing the program of socio-economic development for 2016-2020 years with the government, Lukashenka stated that “it is necessary to recover the losses in the coming five years.” And he wished: “There should be no pessimism!”

Lukashenka’s statement somehow reminded the recent enchanting dialogue of the Russian Prime Minister with the Crimeans. When Medvedev arrived on a visit to the annexed Crimea, peninsula residents swamped him with complaints on low pensions and high prices, and he replied: ”There is just no money now” and wished good mood and health.

And now, following him, Aliaksandr Lukashenka is trying to instill optimism in Belarusians. The only thing is that, like Medvedev, he can’t handle it well enough. Judging by the stormy reaction on the forums, Belarusians have not been cheered up.

It is understandable: for so many years we, like Cheburashka, have been building and building our unique model, heeding the calls of the authorities, saying that we have to bear up for a while and there will be happiness, and now it turns out that the happiness is at least “to recover the losses.”

All these years at a pace to be envied our salary has been growing into $ 1,000, and suddenly it turned out that theater artists with their earnings of Br4 million are forced to look for part time-jobs as tilers. We used to call out so loudly about the lowest level of unemployment, and ended up with the highest unemployment growth rate in the post-Soviet space. We told the whole world what fine fellows we were, not allowing “all sorts of wicked men” to “privatize” our companies, and all of a sudden within the last six months the share of unprofitable enterprises in the Belarusian industry has risen to 34.2%.

Rising prices, beggarly pensions, absurd taxes – that’s what we have, having been sticking to the line that Aliaksandr Lukashenka himself has described as “unique.” And now, according to his orders, we have to go a bit backwards. And then with renewed vigour to follow the same direction.

And the most important thing is – more optimism! Good luck and good mood!

Sviatlana Miatsiolkina, Salidarnasts