Kiryl Kascian (Belarus)
Belarusian Review, 29.01.2014

Belarus – EU: how to deal with the outsider?6

In the editorial to the recent issue of Belarusian Review (vol. 25, issue 4), it was argued that Belarus remains in the “second tier” of the EU Eastern Partnership initiative (EaP). This secondary Belarusian position has been erroneously interpreted as an argument for Belarus to have no other choice than to be under the influence of Putin’s Russia.

Kiryl Kascian (Belarus)
Belarusian Review, 02.06.2014

Man who helped to really understand Belarus4

Thus far, much has been written about Hienadź Buraŭkin by those who knew him closely. I don’t belong to them, yet I was fortunate enough to know this man personally.

Siargei Pulsha (Ukraine)
Тиждень.ua, 19.03.2014

Чому Лукашенка не підтримує Росію4

Президент Білорусі минулого тижня вкотре заявив: він виступає за територіальну цілісність України. Де-факто це означає, що в російсько-українському конфлікті Лукашенка зайняв сторону України.

João de Almeida Dias (Portugal)
Observador, 08.12.2014

While resisting, they expect no surprise240

Longform article about different people who, 20 years after Lukashenko’s rise to power, still fight the regime. Includes conversation with Ales Bialiatski from Viasna; a visit to Belsat’s office in Minsk; touches the issue of the Belarusian language with a visit to Mova Na Nova classes; and an interview with Liavon Volski. (Please visit the link where the article was published to see photographs and videos by the article’s author)

Valery Kavaleuski (Belarus)
Belarusian Review, 02.09.2014

Talks on Ukraine in Minsk: does Belarus start its way out of self-isolation?5

Amidst the Ukrainian crisis, Belarus has been more active than ever since the beginning of 90s.

Valery Kavaleuski (Belarus)
Belarusian Review, 01.11.2014

Prudent approach to Belarus requires comprehensive and honest assessment3

Carnegie Endowment fellow Balazs Jarabik in his piece Revisiting Belarus: The Reality Beyond the Rhetoric makes an attempt to paint a comprehensive picture of the situation in Belarus, in political sphere, economy, and society. The article portrays selective facts and figures from a peculiar perspective.

Siarhei Pulsha (Belarus)
Тиждень.ua, 12.03.2014

Росія втрачає підтримку союзника2

Щораз більше білорусів приміряють на свою країну кримський сценарій, і він їм не до вподоби. Хоча, здавалося б, де Крим, а де Мінськ?

Frank Lutz (Germany)
Hohenloher Zeitung, 20.06.2014

Märchenhafte Städte, offene Grenzen1

Wie zwei junge Weißrussinnen ihren Freiwilligendienst in Deutschland erlebt haben

Martin Paulsen (Norway)
Klassekampen, 05.02.2014

Lee Harvey Oswald’s Minsk48

The assassination of John F. Kennedy on 22 November 1963 made Lee Harvey Oswald one of the most well known assassins in world history, and the object of dozens of conspiracy theories. Many have asked if he did it alone, or if he could have been an agent for KGB, at a time when the Cold War was at it’s coldest. Two recent books show that the Soviet security service might have played a part, but not as directly as the conspiracy theorists like to think.

Paul Flückiger (Switzerland)
Neue Zürcher Zeitung, 05.05.2014

Repression vor der Eishockey-WM in Weissrussland/Repressions Ahead of Ice Hockey World Championships in Belarus2

Hosting the Ice Hockey World Championships is the most prestigious project of autocrat Aleksandr Lukashenko in his twenty-year term. Troublemakers are being arrested. The opposition is not in the mood for protest because of the crisis in Ukraine.

Santino Santinelli (Italy)
One Europe, 11.09.2014

The Power of the Theatrical Style: The Experience of the Belarus Free Theatre Company158

Many artists from all over the world work hard and sacrifice themselves to fight for a good cause. It is also the case of the Belarus free Theatre.

Simone Brunner (Austria)
DATUM, 01.04.2014

Im Eispalast/Inside the Ice Palace6

Belarus is considered the Europe’s last dictatorship, the death penalty is still applicable. Will it become new Ukraine or will it stick with Russia?

Eva Coronado Alonso (Spain)
Achtung magazine, 26.12.2014

The Belarusian language wants its place4

Although Russian and Belarusian share an alphabet, they are different languages and the latter is fighting for greater recognition.

Nabeelah Shabbir (United Kingdom)
The Guardian, 25.07.14

Belarus anti-nuclear activist fears for 'another Chernobyl' on her doorstep1

Tatyana Novikova says new Russian-funded nuclear plant bypassed planning rules and violates international conventions

Gerhard Gnauck (Germany)
Die Welt, 14.02.2014

Wo eine neue Elite wächst2

Einmalig in der Europäischen Union: eine Universität im Exil. Nach ihrem Verbot gründeten Weißrussen ihre Hochschule in Litauen neu. Und die Mehrheit der Absolventen kehrt in die Heimat zurück.

Argemino Barro (Spain)
El Confidencial, 10.7.2014

¿La dictadura perfecta? Bielorrusia, dos décadas de Aleksandr Lukashenko3

The article inquires in the field whether it is appropriate to call Belarus a “perfect dictatorship”, given its economic standards, low levels of protests and alleged stability, The context is 2014: the year of the Hockey Championship, the war in Ukraine and the 20th anniversary of Lukashenko in power.

Nancy Waldmann (Germany)
Die Zeit, 30.12.2014

Ein Mythos in Gefahr3

Vor zehn Jahren wurde die European Humanities University aus Weißrussland vertrieben. Heute kämpft sie im litauischen Exil ums Überleben. Wie konnte das passieren?

Faina Nakanechnaya (Sweden)
Östran, 15.9.2014

Från Minsk till Kalmar är steget inte så långt, eller...52

Visst är det en skön känsla att älska sitt yrke och att kunna njuta av livet. Jag känner verk- ligen att jag hamnat rätt när jag valt journalistik som min yrkesbana. Det är därför jag är här i Kal- mar och gör praktik på Östran. Jag kom från Vitryssland till Sverige tack vare FOJO, fortbildningen för journalister i Kalmar.

Elena Romanato (Italy)
Millecanali, 16.4.2014

The many faces of Kosice: Zmicier Wajciuszkiewicz1

Interview to Zmicier Wajciuszkiewicz, guest of the local tv festival Golden Beggar in Kosice(Slovakia)

Katsiaryna Kryzhanouskaya (Belarus)
Deutsche Welle, 23.5.2014

Виктор Дашук: Быть "врагом народа" в Беларуси значит стать "человеком-никто"27

В Висбадене известный белорусский режиссер Виктор Дашук представил свою ленту "Искушение". Корреспондент DW поговорил с режиссером о его видении происходящего сегодня в Беларуси.

Katsiaryna Kryzhanouskaya (Belarus)
Deutsche Welle, 14.11.2014

Белорусский писатель Артур Клинов: На пороге войны нечего делить власть28

Как украинские события сказываются на ситуации в Беларуси? Повлияли ли они на взаимоотношения власти и интеллигенции? Какова степень писательской свободы в Беларуси? На эти и другие вопросы Екатерины Крыжановской отвечает в студии DW белорусский писатель Артур Клинов.

Dmytro Plakhta (Ukraine)
Всеукраїнська спортивна газета "Спортивка", 14.10.2014

Навколофутбольна післямова з Білорусі5

Crossing the Belarusian border by Ukrainian fans and journalists, a trip with travel agency "OMON", Belarusian oppositional rally at the stadium, "the most free game in the history of Belarusian football", a friendly game between fans, European stadium "Borisov Arena"... Ukrainian sports newspaper "SPORTYVKA" tells about these and other experiences after visiting the match between the national football teams of Ukraine and Belarus.

Michał Potocki (Poland)
Dziennik Gazeta Prawna, 4.7.2014

Saszka dorwał się do mikrofonu/Sashka grabbed a microphone1

There is an idea that in 1994, Aliaksandr Lukashenka, then almost a forty-year-old deputy who won the hearts of the Belarusians as a knight errant fighting true and false corruption, was the hero of the first color revolution in what was the USSR back then. The former director of the sovkhoz Garadzets was the first one in his region to win the election beating Moscow and the governing nomenclature. The events associated with the victory in that election constitute one of the most interesting stories in the history of Belarusian politics.

Volha Charnysh (Belarus)
Transitions Online, 10.10.2014

Whose Freedom?1

For Belarus’ pro-democracy opposition, gay rights remains a toxic issue.

Anna Zmanovskaya (Russia)
International Ice Hockey Federation, 21.05.2014

Petrovich the oracle3

Minsk’s wonder-crab has the top tips

Simon Book (Germany)
Handelsblatt, 05.10.2014

Lukashenko's Lucrative Offers 5

Daniel Krutzinna is a management consultant in Minsk. One day the German came to Belarus in hope of revolution. In the meantime it has become obvious that this remains open. Yet he makes business. And what a business.

Dmitry Okrest (Russia)
Nihilist, 23.9.2014

Igor Olinevich is 31374

Igor Olinevich‘s book "On the Way to Magadan" based on his diary was published in 2013. About the book and conditions in Belarusian prisons.

Illia Lapato (Belarus)
Altöttinger Liebfrauenbote, 1.11.2014

120 Kilometer zu Fuss fur die Taufe3

Eine besondere Wallfahrt nach Budslaw. was

Tanya Korovenkova (Belarus)
Transitions Online, 16.12.2014

Accreditation Crunch3

Belarusian journalists working for foreign media outlets used to get warnings. Now they’re getting trials.

Alyaksandr Yanusik (Belarus)
Transitions Online, 28.11.2014

Say it Loud, I am Belarusian and Proud2

Among young people in Belarus, speaking the national language instead of Russian is coming into vogue.

Paula Borowska (Poland)
Belarus Digest, 18.11.2014

Non-Formal Education In Belarus: Unleashing The Civil Society Potential2

Over the past couple of years informal education has witnessed remarkable growth in Belarus. It offers Belarusians possibilities missing at the nation’s over-regulated state-run universities. New grass-roots initiatives such as the European College of Liberal Arts and the Flying University are organising innovative and inspiring courses in Minsk. Although functioning within a certain limitations peculiar to Belarus, they still manage to appeal to the nation’s youth.

Igar Gubarevich (Belarus)
Belarus Digest, 16.10.14

Belarus At The United Nations: Resentment, Bragging And Anti-Western Rhetoric11

Igar Gubarevich (Belarus)
Belarus Digest, 4.8.2014

Combatting Human Trafficking: Belarus Leads International Efforts14

Paula Borowska (Poland)
New Eastern Europe, 29.4.2014

Linguistic Initiatives Conquer Belarus2

It starts at the moment of passport control on the Belarusian side. A disbelief and suspicion on the border officer’s face when hearing a foreigner replying in Belarusian to routine questioning in Russian is priceless. Soon it becomes apparent that this is a state bilingualism à la Belarus.

Olena Andriushchenko (Ukraine)
Dnepr Vechernii, 9.11.2014

Світ суворого режиму (World of a strict regime) 420

У нас звикли думати, що сусідня Біларусь, в порівнянні з Україною, живе краще. Там якісні продукти, чисто на вулицях, впорядковані соціальна та інші сфери життєдіяльності…

Evgeny Karpov (Belarus)
Regard Sur L'Est, 9.6.2014

Le show business bélarusse: Un parfum de naphtaline 2

«Belarus? Where is it? Is it Russia?», telles sont les questions les plus fréquentes qu’entend un Bélarusse en voyage à l’étranger. En un peu moins de 25 ans d’indépendance, le Bélarus n’a pas réussi à se forger une image distincte, ni à se donner une identité dans l’espace mondial de l’information.

Evgeny Karpov (Belarus)
New Eastern Europe, 17.7.2014

Championship in a Strange House5

Until recently Belarus was treated as a “strange house” somewhere on Europe’s periphery. However, this year the master of the estate decide to open the gates and to throw “a party” in order to demonstrate to his neighbours that all the rumours circulating around the continent are mere fictions.

Ewa Zwierzyńska (Poland)
Czasopis, 5.5.2014

Lista szesnastu/The list of sixteen3

Burza rozpętała się jesienią 2012 roku. Jako pierwsza spadła głowa dr Andrieja Czerniakiewicza. Już wcześniej można było podejrzewać, że coś jest nie tak. Od jakiegoś czasu Czerniakiewicza nachodziło KGB, rozmawiali, wypytywali. Drugą ofiarą był Wiktor Szwed. To była prawdziwa bomba - wieloletni profesor, utytułowany i zasłużony dla uniwersytetu. Nikt nie spodziewał się jego zwolnienia. Do niego KGB również przychodziło, ale zdecydowanie rzadziej. Docent Ina Sorkina straciła pracę na początku 2014 roku. Z nią nikt wcześniej nie rozmawiał.

Ewa Zwierzyńska (Poland)
Czasopis, 5.9.2014

Mova nanova - kursy patrioyzmu/Mova nanova — a course of patriotism 2

Celem naszych spotkań jest nie tyle nauka języka białoruskiego, co kształtowanie światopoglądu. Język białoruski - tak jak każdy zresztą język - tworzy swój odrębny świat. Jest to świat paralelny do świata języka rosyjskiego, dominującego w naszym kraju. Chcemy ludziom stworzyć możliwość dołączania do świata białoruskiego - mówi Ihar Kuźminicz, który wraz z Volhą Astrouską prowadzi w Grodnie kursy języka białoruskiego

Oleksandra Horchynska (Ukraine)
MediaSapiens, 20.11.2014

Belarusian newspapers may even receive warnings for grammatical errors35

Press secretary of the Belarusian Association of Journalists, Boris Goretsky, tells MediaSapiens about how journalists’ rights are violated in Belarus and how the government pressures the media, also touching on the death penalty and the terrorist attack in Minsk in 2011.

Malgozhata Lozovskaya (Russia)
openDemocracy, 27.8.2014

If you want to be a millionaire, go to Belarus14

If you want to know what the Soviet Union was like, go to Belarus.

Yonatan Kunda (Israel)
Haokets, 1.2.2014

The Karlin Cry: Thoughts on Trees, Roots and Metaphors Between Belarus and Jerusalem1

It is strange the way we are taught to think about our roots: we are taught to return to them, to discover and examine them, console in them, grasp on to them like a weapon or a flag, remember them. And at the same time, very simple common sense makes us ask: a root that can be dug up and waved about in the air – isn’t it undermining its purpose?

Alexander Burakov (Belarus)
Deutsche Welle, 4.7.2014

Почему Россия ввела паспортный контроль на границе с Беларусью4

Российские пограничники уже пять месяцев осуществляют паспортный контроль на границе с Беларусью. С чем это связано, и кого затрагивают эти проверки? Об этом - в репортаже DW.

Brendan McCall (United States)
Regard Sur l´Est, 1.11.2014

Korniag Theatre: Not What We Think We Ought to See from Belarus214

If one often thinks that the independent Belarusian theater is just a metaphor criticising politics, the interview with Korniag Theatre shows that an alternative is possible.

Alexander Burakov (Belarus)
Deutsche Welle, 26.2.2014

Смоленск превращается в белорусский город6

Белорусское присутствие в российском Смоленске за последние два года резко увеличилось. Город стал рынком сбыта белорусских товаров, образовательным и шопинговым центром.

Marco Fieber (Germany)
To4ka-Treff, 23.5.2014

No ice hockey for dissidents37

In May 2014 the annual Ice Hockey World Championships was held in Belarus. In the shadow of the matches, the authoritarian regime of President Lukashenko shows its true colours.

Stuart Wadsworth (United Kingdom)
New Eastern Europe, 30.1.2014

Belarus: A Christmas Trip to the Land that Time Forgot (part 3)3

Travel writer Stuart Wadsworth continues his journeys across Belarus, describing Chagall’s childhood home, dinner-table discussions about Putin and the (dubious) geographic centre of Europe.

Stuart Wadsworth (United Kingdom)
New Eastern Europe, 24.2.2014

Belarus: A Christmas Trip to the Land that Time Forgot (part 4)5

Novogrudok is an unassuming town between Minsk and Grodno which, with the freezing sleet and slush in which we arrived, did not look particularly appealing.

Artyom Shraibman (Belarus)
Belarus Digest, 19.2.2014

Is Belarus A European North Korea? - Top Three Myths About Belarus In Western Media1

Describing Belarus as the "last European dictatorship" in Western media has become a tradition. In many cases it is justified by real human rights abuses and the absence of any real democracy in the country. However, often authors and journalists go far beyond objective analysis or describing the true situation in Belarus. They prefer to portray the country as a big concentration camp in the middle of Europe.

Léonide Golberg (Ukraine)
Maidan, 15.4.2014

Уладзімер Арлов: Дрогобич залишаю із надією ще раз з’явитися на вулиці Крокодилів12

Uladzimir Arlou: "I leave Drohobych with the hope of once again making an appearance on the street of Crocodiles". A famous Belarusian poet, writer, publicist, historian travelled to Drohobych for the first time in May of last year. At that time, Lviv was hosting the days of Belarusian-Swedish-Ukrainian literature.

Brendan McCall (United States)
Regard Sur L'Est, 19.6.2014

Art, Lies, and Truth in Contemporary Belarus124

For many foreigners, the extent of their knowledge of Belarus is through the politicised performances of Belarus Free Theatre. But is all Belarusian culture political? Does it even have to be?

Siarhei Pulsha (Belarus)
Тиждень.ua, 24.10.2014

Чому Лукашенка не підтримує Росію3

Президент Білорусі минулого тижня вкотре заявив: він виступає за територіальну цілісність України. Де-факто це означає, що в російсько-українському конфлікті Лукашенка зайняв сторону України.