On 9 October, during a Belarus-Ukraine qualifying match to Euro 2016, Ukrainian and Belarusian fans demonstrated an unprecedented level of solidarity. They shouted the national slogans of both countries and chanted an infamous anti-Putin song. Although the police detained around two dozen fans before and after the game, their response was rather restrained. This light punishment" could be a signal to the Kremlin that Belarus does not support its imperialist politics in the post-Soviet space.
Over 50 companies offer discounts for students participating in the free language course Mova Nanova. KEF conference 'The Global Context, Local decisions: the potential of the private sector in Belarus' will take place in Minsk. Belarusian state officials, independent economists and experts expected at the event. All Minsk grassroots are being collected in a single google document. Open data community helps Belarusians benefit from publicly available data.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenka, unlike his Russian counterpart, sees no immediate problems for Belarus in Moldova's association with Europe. However, he is dissatisfied with the existing level of trade and investments in Belarus' relations with most CIS countries. Belarus succeeded in obtaining a $24m grant from China. In exchange, the Chinese delegation got a promise of Minsk's help in increasing China's influence in Europe.
Belarus Digest is launching a new series, Belarus Photo Digest, which shows images of different aspects of life in today's Belarus. In the first issue photographer Siarhiej Leskiec documents everyday life in the Belarusian countryside. Only one in four Belarusians lives in rural areas today. And yet, most Belarusians are first-generation city dwellers. This is all the more interesting when considering the fact that only half a century ago, more than two-thirds of the population still lived in villages. During the summer, villages get livelier as city parents send their children to their grandparents for the three-month summer break from school. In the winter though, village life quiets down. In smaller villages, there is no running water and wood stoves function as the main source of heat. According to the Belarusian Statistics Agency, people in rural areas live four years less on average than people in cities.
According to a leaked document published by TUT.BY this week, the Belarusian parliament will insert its own special clause when it ratifies the Treaty of the Eurasian Economic Union. The clause will reserve the country’s right to ignore its treaty obligations if Russia does not agree to lift all barriers of the free trade regime that are harmful to Belarus. This most recent scandalous development is unfolding only three months before the planned inception of the next stage of the Eurasian integration project – the Eurasian Economic Union.
Now Mova Nanova invites Belarusian children for free Belarusian languages courses. Golden Age University announced an Age Friendly City campaign in Hrodna to improve the quality of life of older people. Independent Institute of Socio-Economic and Political Studies (IISEPS) releases fresh data of a September national poll. It turns out that the Belarusians are ready for changes, but it is less associated with the opposition.
Over the past two decades, the Belarusian population declined by nearly seven percent. By 2050, demographers are predicting an over 30% decline. The shrinking pool of Belarusians is in part driven by a high death rate. While Belarus has converged with Western Europe in terms of fertility, it ranks well behind the developed and even developing world on mortality measures. Premature death is much likelier among men in Belarus than in neighbouring EU states–the probability is 1.7 times higher than in Poland, and 2.5 times higher than in the Czech Republic.
On 29 September, Alexander Lukashenka stated that schools should increase the number of Belarusian language lessons they teach. Following Lukashenka's public speech in Belarusian in July this year, a rare even in and of itself, the retirement of some pro-Russian officials and the unveiling of a monument to the Great Duke Alhierd all show that the authorities realise the need to strengthen national identity as war rages on in Ukraine. Even if this attempt at Belarusisation does not become Lukashenka's official policy, the government de facto declared a policy of non-aggression towards the Belarusian language after decades of suppressing it. Low-level officials will not be afraid to support it, and cultural organisations will have more opportunities for development.
Belarusian state TV showed the Belarusian leader directly blamed Americans for plotting the present military conflict in Ukraine. On another occasion, state TV journalists reported on the benefits of bringing more American business to Belarus. Belarus is faring better than the USA or Russia - or so state-run media journalists report when covering the recent rankings of healthcare systems by Bloomberg. They explained that its accessibility and equality, despite the financial situation of Belarusian patients, make the healthcare system unique when compared to other countries.
The western press took note of refugees from Ukraine arriving in Belarus, who has in turn provided them with housing and offered them work. The story of two families demonstrates Belarus' attraction as the situation in Ukraine continues to be dangerous and chaotic. Meanwhile, the press also took interest in the United States' renewed calls to have the investigation of 'disappeared' opposition figures re-opened.
On 16 September local authorities closed an exhibition entitled “West Belarusian Atlantis” in Zaslauye near Minsk. The author of the project, Ihar Melnikau, dedicated the exhibition to Belarusians in the Polish army in the 1939 Polish-German campaign and to everyday life in Polish-ruled Western Belarus. The exhibition effectively propagated the notion of a Polish-ruled Western Belarus as a legitimate and more human alternative to Soviet Belarus. The state official who closed the exhibition purportedly said that the exhibition denigrated the Soviet Union, hence it denigrates modern Belarus.
Mova Cup took promoted the use of the Belarusian language trying oneself in various sports. The Embroidery Day will celebrate the Belarusian national dress. All-Belarusian Congress for Independence scheduled for December. The European Humanities University welcomes new students. A special hotline Green Phone received over 120 complains from Belarusian citizens regarding the urban environment.
On 19 September Russian Agricultural Control announced that Russia can restrict the imports of fish and dairy from a number of Belarusian companies. These companies allegedly violate the sanctions regime by re-exporting EU products under fake labels. Since the very imposition of sanctions, Russia has constantly charged Belarus with cheating. Belarusian officials have denied the accusations or blamed incidents on technical mishaps. For Belarusian food producers, Russia's ban on Western food imports has become an opportunity to cash in, and they have been willing to take risks in order to earn money.
Price increases for regulated goods and services, as well as the abolition of price regulations on meat had a stimulating effect on inflation in Belarus. In the first half of 2014 a gradual reduction of Belarus' foreign currency reserves occurred as a result of significant foreign debt service payments. But over the summer this year external and internal borrowing and foreign currency purchasing by the National Bank had a positive influence on the volume of foreign currency reserves.