Belarus (magazine # 2 2021) by BELARUS Magazine

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No. 2 (1049), 2021 Беларусь. Belarus

BELARUS Politics. Economy. Culture

FROZEN MOMENTS BEAUTY

ISSN 2415-394X

NEWSPAPER FROM BELARUS

ГОЛАС РАДЗІМЫ EDITION OF THE “ГОЛАС РАДЗІМЫ” IS AVAILABLE AT WWW.ZVIAZDA.BY

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ГОЛАС РАДЗІМЫ

голасрадзімы аўторак, 26 студзеня, 2021

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● АЎТОРАК, 26 СТУДЗЕНЯ, 2021

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Та ды я іх па чу ла ўпер пры х іль н і к аўпасве ц е.фальк л а філ фа ка БДУ за кон чы ла ас пі ран ту ру ст ц с н ы ту п та л ц е ы о П а ем м е м н х а е т) ’ю ск п р я “Н ярэд ва каў ыР свет ў еас усё н н з са та , б ўсі ікі ко ліс са б об аакд цы н уфальк шы дом яхайалом ючы ейны лопч ю”. ы Заці До раіны тыту тэрв ыпу там аў, п каўі мевн ўх, У н час аўтэн я н ,р абў рыс ву той эсп ”, рыстканавукоўцаіэтнаспявачка "Знспе каф ІМ Бе-ЭФ ныў ж,д я тыта 29 яль уг мы кі дзе Пршы Ёл тычныя песні ст ака с ажніянас э ню. лежгошрзола хто чоб курс в т яц сеўэрссць дзіуб ўсі такоа ж усі , вел сок м ко ык ка то н ля Акапдэ еркаст кнаьнезідпры д пуб ук ін з ін го ў: ер ся стэ дзя ў, ма одзе х люан еліза нпчер цэртных НаталляМатыліцкаяраспавядае, дэа Белаарусі. о вы ы лоаўспя пта бы ья Яна а кла Ш вн ны ым лыя начы жын дзя касі коўі тэта у ваць уўкан ксмы рміі -дл энт ня ыя рі,на дае м — е,у , не мб ьмі уза ле нвук р . ч бімасі хо а энне. знваіцн кары зон эта йыряьтлор еш лень :бвоер е рус ей пбе ы занка я Фальк ад ый лор на дсцэ лах. якаўтэнтычнаяпесняпрабіваалеаосря а,“дае й фальк ніч адн (бы адз яч ін для айэ на куль орск ь жы , ш то смі като удзед про свя зі не вылкон е П ваўся асц ячкую ся, кСіма гыэта одлогію ды нла нік цмі В ыза ы фа хы . яго зна шоў нацёдруг акул Ар ач г добо хаце зв эт Яшк ана ад — бўо іобз д штоль ны ка гл. уды а лоі гіі ал та У ТУ чык тыс акі зван сячю фа аліг сяц х аў ках ч цоў е фальк Пр ццё то Т лькі халі рыя, обр сты кі — ў апра лі насцэнічныяпляцоўкіўбе фед на лору Бе П ры рлуарусуі. бр К о пр елмейзен ні-х-ва ац ц у №яго га ф фесар арцді,— ад ыў, рж Ігэтёатрў”. х,іх1то ай гоаза чдэла гов імя лор, аў 3равер БН тон 200 сі,т так 5ты ы16 у С дзе овы ану аўда, на АМ? там…ся:э па а!”. люрыць а куль ьысу аР а ту яства я 2рнта ыш азаў аар а сё сучасны. Гэта параўнальна няэдаў рус кагая дзярж уні Ц зі новы Сры чана нк на, паячы ыр бел во ы хстадзяад ст дабфальк аб стр расКёд турусады дл сітутэ ты ы п лі ры ыш лару еру ш3 тур іял шнія 50н ьп ету 0, ,пр гея н эхавогэта зі.н ленн Ц стр юны, кр цца, з Зямл І ц А х, до чуў д арубалбу чы н м кла ш і! лек”, эсп ом ае азп“ад апама не, тэмас асл па нз эх адЗу ючы з 2000х, у галіуне й сім у гэтай рыны, ыў аву й род эк Не май зімі ітараын ка до тыч 1 Сяр ала іне ядчалі агажА і.ад гэт і ёс і ж хто бра уб ка культу “в Х січ катац ска Д пры вст зв яБе Цяп азвы трук , філ апо за насц узб ь зітваў. іэчы хаўтэн атдуры2тар т вя п ім п а . а а ы н д ц яў в д — а е, е ь ск р л , к х д д п л зв Ц а н Наталуля .Д ю ваным. до сур’ ы н ц тэн яардаслед А— кашраас з вал- быць зя гУ ікі аяк нзапаытраба пе стаў ўсяляк спрыяць драз аў ,утычныхдзе спрарве а пер нія ц К л ро о дл аін. ецц айс іцэй э.За ольш раем і вн азац р Лвіццюьтэ ці розу не раст ым ць не са ве енмыякаяёз ны сы хітэк чык. най юр ата пра эхавы ю п іяйн це ў й ц кава нар льце мо час ы кая н а а залучннеш алкая адёй н л гжа рад імі зай ан а р ні, бэквае кр вуча гон , л шч сяб пе ыцы аск над ы схо я- тыпліц аб о епла вя ты пам ме,с зада аць трэб шчас мо сва экспеадыцыі я запіса формаў фальк пес і, спя —якія сама го ф акін ц сель куней х гар твор верш тац між “Ян яйшай салору. Ра ін па й за ў м ызв коМа уесм д елкатрар . Ён ас ік я. н ’ю”,— та с- і п трэбу авагод гэты лын ьва даўч мне як на , уя джаў агоя рылі цьі рад —р іча(ё )д - маліся налву літ акад оту: жён есар,а.йАляк фа ен урыс , і хл ўнае ятае эрц воле узр а зв це? і пі-сала лўарча,— ты сёдэт мз ар песмню дыяя веюда ла”: сеагуфальк лорных экспеРды ака я .зна е р“Каб А коўцыфальк ыч эміі як аў т т. ысты, н ым ьуЛ ла од цый, к доагай сейрко ку,м ынн енн днан ямную дое аурс Г ланія чат кале атч адк ў: ёс ыят анах нов бывае Ай скн дзі Хр опчы па сваё ы,д насц ошчв ык г в ядзе н ы Пум ч чн ацна як ату м я юс яна йнасён драс кіда ач тэн лі-ай зчім ер ,Пес тас май ТУ,чы стыне пердту апры. але шым сіць ляіхзаам каш заўты пука во найўлеп ык эрэ ўв кт ар Ал ай р інф ен Ш д 9 шм ім асця чав хпл ыма ўна лікай Шы -намузыколагі, ўр аў ся і х рэнякаў, тама Н Сарнам інсцэ цё ыста к? Ё жадан светушы ь у аць па роно вы па н іко і ліпны аразу для зіну апр ніўсі адна ую выю геты уп нылю а ,якія ла ды- р вя што аўпар як ад аар чу.поВы канпае лля ятгоэх іаж вес дха цыадзін ер н ндзі, ню таары за бабуляй. тоўнасцьБсу сту ды доўу яльн клю ашы лаШ ця аВя віча осен .не віталася. аўта ер Дыстбылі - лпаў ва ш ла ва уанадзін Ат выя ”, са нц не лае .Цік сва эн мэнчаснаму слу пр літэх чэн сейПхоыўвп емдаытыяэк эн па ніч чы ліў ся д оўв пускновай ер т ікаую вніч зааевмічурак уад ра адч нска І антн айн аўды м,хто год га ецы яў,і ўн іхаі льнас зан гора ПІв усі) пры ац гур ы н сцэ эх та аў ліатся г ўн м аў ца. нфер Да на лі - трым ца! акж праб м акяпер той й п ава, лоп больш кірунку на сольпна і ў складзе фальклор спрэчы, лар ім з арН юкога эс Р на той практыайцы бы н ы М — парных ава нічтоў ехва х родзацоў оў па адкр авіў араў аў,в ліас .Ця эна па лена бліка і СМ іпатвтаыі ера-цыі няіжогуріамадпыад і ацыі рык мае на аўявў і.лА сп ленн ца.І таМ цыя арты Ры амБ елар ацне. тр На па екіх каб Іхо а ва лем уну ва “ў до азі т ў -к ту т п ы ш аст за сто бу ду чых фі ло ла гаў, але ні хто з іх, Ся род тал ля Ма ты ліц кая — больш за 30 год. га с ц а ж і” ы н ве аў в а н іж п “N е ы а к в т с р п у л а 1 а п л — н н а ыU ды ацр х н са ы ых вы к гаю дэн сп да, аіл дэн няБ д п з до цьб жн ыв ўся зр бры ль стуў ріэс аг ўА эсп таў ў м ноэл Вы энт гай ёды тудэн дыб насц Лук асікл аірунсс 9н6аў5 іч д ад італры фа нмы ер гу — о ы б мо ознды роў З Наталляй Матыліцкай СзБч R. ся аз ан Рецца, д якаяа спясвае аўтэн іс такя і нед заспяваў. Сябм і п каобмая ўвпыр е іпважтэахнн сця зда ё тыч ра асту вых адзе Міх сту лен схо т адфальк рты ь іларыстка, з ЗК ра ыім а — пр ў ж сце ул наыбхкгорбеладату т Ів го даў ел аў OTA рбоар ы наалааў нал танн ха ару- . сэ эзі пав аў хс с жаў др У ктыч ерны пр зно пр ны аны ызва сты зідэн тасц льк іў е ня сіут гадзеўтарарнуанаыр чыкуам ь цгівеуда ная р ла, штоыя захапілася аўтэнтыч с мі ж Раст аля было кнуц не абава ыц ачы мчена зіўндаэнв тлво ш упес 19 ьтэ Пр ай :“Яз іншы вызаў зяр ксан лі пра тое, як цяжка аў днаў дытэн чжн пы сійн Бел жой а в хл ар і нааімхя а а К,аза сі.П д за 9ы - N”.зн ін та ну нага вай аліч одв ачы Прэ ачыс не то ав э2цоў УШмУпеаджыянта Самрочжасодцпес нітіч е лен ынхня лік ТУ хці ей: айд Аля сер м ы е мі, м прапанаявала паспяваць іх на яе ныя омХ амі,змен цаж быв нні. прабівалася на сцэнічта ныя пля К адлва акі, д нУіў мхай фе огуў зам учан га а рэнацшыаскнафыед вяца атлац арпаў скен-ас яго ннай іча(з уг ы ўр ТУ, ўр то расл дар , тацпакблтутазаННБ чы ры Н аві ыц ац ер аюяр яўенсел р ага БН ты дал наш агу ом .Ір.аЛ м р лў Мін ч ёўвала месца пад сон се. ИТфга капнлі тэцам к Цуэн е аг тач сто ов та ьта і ску.р Я ай заспявала перад Каз ысюты ісча о шым еьн агата вані доімн іакія су с сзваятплвяіж кучА чы нов 4-га, аюч уБН няя м, х ейп кіх, ёраў анна су ну,сдпэ р,ып тр ны так ркам ў ув ыаяціэкам ату гэт Н наНа ы! вы ым ўсім к, рхэц раекця пер адтт дНмі, ад піс аріныас Ге- пр нгіый зваагал ку рна м якіх рІнля.АыВік гас —Як здарыла ся, ал таан а- Уіцмь яЁул ы быў іуУла Т сярод ма 194 ведв тыв ераш ты эт,ал ута Алф руж а а Кхаім н ьна н дзімір Бяр мв го . ігэ му ярну кл канаам эан ар аупнаол рлэс нбел аеву шныелотгій агатнынУн, гра арц як-к рабчас н с а сіа, ацонана ко йатлэс г ы забе а ас,п дам ню На алек цяп авагі сіт лік арэс аўд ам м ры тэсхтв о аран Кп.І рхнсраў. яза раўна, што па спя Каць Іва пад зв ей пшарлуьнковту ўт хацеў аз якараз йчыхЁн рг чук стэ ўцга прлак Ластварыць фальк нч наків ых ттвсэнрэк ніч сц ін дынавпаў та яі твы е ў Ж ів льм ты . а н эр ер , ы п Ц а, іў а а ц а ь к ту ы у а , н С д в ен ты м аа с н і то а А л а а ар амз мк ааў тяын уал я н лістку, якая магла б ва ж а гурт, а Ж ы шукаў м ні?ыцхста цыйЯн ес а, намага а р ін эх д ст іактп тычныяпес с ідны га нса :а. злор М спр ава рэа на ў, ш анін тыўн вамі. рэат трым ыз“ зал Мін І да н анкнікі пкібер фар авой октнар азу ж і,пера іранва ацтыа ціжык цы Га цьэі ўніц ар н-. тыч но р боў —ляЛю дева й е та вна ам спеваў м га да аўтэн З чаганых члы ых нн ,мматырпарынаспя ізааваць чы та д гэ спра ілаў пад акт чыўз 2у БП цо у такой манеры. А тут я! Мож віч на ацы ніды у- агадтач ка старшнеты аты —д йскургія. іканойВікцыляе дз руаспрска п е ліс ё. р сніня д уп заава з ы о ю за адчу вучання на мфілфаку. заць, нас звёў сам лёс. Так мяне гэ вараў імі еўск авы кант кон №4 ўсяў т дла рўа чаіксе на ыдаы йнсна ен унут амун плен яЯк оў чыкк ітэта ыні кі ін ацый рэк пра тна АЭйфрамыццтаў абочсі,с эд.) ст сва обел е сл чыя ічза лу учы ыстроі умЛадзі Слуцкім фалькл лорная прак ў гурт “Ліцьвіны”. ➔ Стар. 7 с іс ыў, сабж ўыік н Матыліцкая тар , лася ў нас ім аф ты ка: Д Наталля хР х а аўштаам ыпрынялі яго ,ін еніц вор анав шко адв стр ля акк ысту а апы едр Рэсп зярж тыту ых н ўасрыж ннёае ліВ слолва- го рн (Р н м а.— а РА ін кол род н-в аўств К ык уб аўн та, “ак і. аздй ессцтаў П таас саіккв ва бвае сас чы і ўз яйт Ів нюю раў ар ны ва с атбэкы ТО ае еж ц ці.ам лікі ага ан(М аадсуэчнраўаза дя ль на ны нлай азн і Іг як бны арэс ярэд емест п�ю К ам пр ,мпіі лаен ў лонадпоомванксітыд АС іка ня важ .Уа мов арус АИ а Р р н лю ”.Ж с кіс в та ы ы яц ж га ў е я ан ае а І а, П л арыяго азв коаўц Нч),а нін аў т к ы тМ іс ко зн аріж ув тэр далёмкаль ў ф ап лаве вед тыту Н Бе н зе ку д оЦ :н учтоын ач АЯ на: к ссатуюпз лга экар ам ла ме у,не леі ба іс гоцу энр іс ча дачы Інс НА трата вяд адзі ”расвы тм палрас РН од ага бе ды т аў на іш(Ца рхнуа ск лр ыаяты н ра тар аса “С оў н і ў ым а ТА Пр жаі…мку ксам а ву п мАаГ пты івьн зацы ай р млал НІ цы аш м рэк Кол ыў: х м раты ўнай а ве ду та вам, аклоавыыПмСс),са ма ў н До на а аб ыс А і МА ба ўваж льны да ст духо аем а ар ці ры На лоў сло іраС датнха юч ое Н ло зі ов : ГУ р аз ім м кл скай сф нас энт за яна ькі ы св рган ацыя вага пе аты і“М 4.0 ан іза нал вы ару кра- Круск адзі аўв — цы тол льнайіяе а стр най тр важ эс-ц цы цы ьн е на ны д тур - рываеі бел і за овы эн аWeb папу нУл назв сказе ах , яе ў пр н й р с ай ас А я ы е й ( е м ь г а э НА ас на Ал ф ств я, дзё цы адчы але кул і. 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CONTENTS

Беларусь. Belarus

BELTA

Social and political magazine No. 2 (1049), February, 2021 Published since 1930 Founders: Zviazda Publishing House editorialand-publishing establishment Editor-in-Chief: Viktor Kharkov Executive Secretary: Valentina Zhdanovich Editorial office address: 220013 Minsk, Belarus, 10a Bogdan Khmelnitsky Street Tel.: +375 (17) 287-19-19, +375 (17) 292-66-92 Тel./fax: +375 (17) 287-15-26.

IT IS WORTH LOOKING INTO THE FUTURE

Today it is very important to understand how our society and economy look in terms of quantity. In general, one cannot do without such information when it comes time to draw up short- and long-term plans for the country’s development. On the whole, a constant increase in the amount of information has become the trend of our time: specialists have an increasing demand for figures, which are the basis for taking the most important decisions in the field of economy, social sector and state building in general, citizens have a need to understand and analyze facts and events

between Minsk and Beijing remains unchanged. China is a strategic partner of Belarus

Such optimistic reality, or Life reflected by statistics

Business Mood

Journalist Inessa Pleskachevskaya met with Anatoly Tozik, the Chairman of the Belarus-China Friendship Society, Director of the Republican Confucius Institute of Sinology at BSU, former ambassador of Belarus to China

BOOK UNITES PEOPLE AND COUNTRIES

Registration Certificate No. 8 issued on 16.07.2018 by the Information Ministry of the Republic of Belarus Design and Layout by Olga Razinkevich Proof-reader Alisa Gungor Беларусь. Belarus is published in Belarusian, English and Chinese. The magazine is distributed to 50 countries worldwide.

The editorial office does not bear responsibility for contents of advertisements.

DEDICATED TO ALISHER NAVOI

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Final responsibility for factual accuracy and interpretation lies with publication authors. Should any article of Беларусь. Belarus be used, reference to the magazine is obligatory.

29 years ago, at the beginning of 1992, diplomatic relations between our countries were established. Since then, much has changed, but the vector of fruitful cooperation

To the benefit of both countries

www.zviazda.by E-mail: belarus.mag@mail.ru

Mai Van Phan: “It’s hard to find a modern writer, who is liked by everyone…” Vietnamese poet Mai Van Phan was born in 1955 in Kim Son (Ninh Binh Province). This is in the Red River Delta, North Vietnam. For seven years he served in the army, in the infantry. Then he entered the College of Foreign Languages, the Faculty of Linguistics and Russian Culture. In 1983 he came to Minsk. He studied at the Pedagogical Institute

Signed for printing on 23.02.2021 Offset printing. Coated paper. Format 60х84 1⁄8. Conventional printed sheets 5,58 Accounting published sheets 7,32 Total circulation — 818

copies (288 — in English)

Order Republican unitary enterprise "BudMedyyaPrayekt" Licence No. 02330/71 on 23.01.2014 220123 Minsk, Belarus, 13/61 V. Khoruzhey Street

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

MORE IN THE ISSUE 1

WHOLE ERA HAS GONE WITH HIM

26 What is the import of the

phenomenon? There are no mountains, but there is sport Our mountain skiing started in the village of Zelenoe, where in 1955 enthusiastic amateurs Viktor Podshibyakin, Anatoly Altukhov and Yury Perminov organized the first competitions. One of the three founding fathers of Alpine Skiing, Yuri Perminov, became a pioneer of the famous track in the village of Raubichi. Viktor Podshibyakin was a coach of the first national team

32 HIKING IN FANTASY STYLE

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

On a journey — with favorite characters How to make reading fashionable again, what to write books for modern children about and what events allow not to lose direct contact with readers — representatives of Zviazda Publishing House

PIK-PIK AND PEPITA ON A HUNT In an ordinary city apartment, in the room of little Veronichka and Maksimka, a fat, lazy mouse lives under the wardrobe

41 New is the basis of the program A new state program “Culture of Belarus” for 2021–2025 was adopted with the purpose to create the conditions for effective cultural work and active involvement of Belarusians in the cultural life of the country

Ice, stop melting! An exhibition of ice and snow figures was held in the Central Botanical Garden of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus

AH, VAUDEVILLE, VAUDEVILLE!..

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IT IS WORTH LOOKING INTO THE FUTURE Unity. Development. Independence — under this motto the 6th All-Belarusian People’s Assembly was held in Minsk, which was attended by representatives of regions, social groups, labor collectives. Important topical issues of modern Belarus were discussed at the meeting.

he delegates of the Assembly considered the results of the implementation of the program of socio-economic development of Belarus for 2016-2020 and the main provisions of the draft of the similar program for 2021-2025. The main goal for the five-year period is to ensure social stability in society and increase the welfare of citizens through high-quality economic growth, building up social capital, creating comfortable conditions for life, work and self-realization. The key goals are to reduce the dependence of economic growth on hydrocarbon raw materials, to increase the export potential

through high-tech goods, and to launch a new investment cycle. It is assumed that the main results will include GDP growth in real terms in 2025 by at least 1.2 times, an increase in life expectancy to 76.5 years, an increase in investment in fixed assets, an increase in exports of goods and services — more than $50 billion in 2025, an increase in real money incomes of the population, including an increase in pensions beyond the inflation rate, as well as an increase in labor productivity in industry. The priorities of the five-year plan are a happy family, powerful regions, an intellectual country, a state as a partner. The President of Belarus made a report on the first day of the Assembly. In the report he assessed the situation in the

country, outlined trends and ambitious tasks for the near future: “How shall we live on in the face of the pandemic and external pressure? What measures should be taken to ensure economic growth and a decent standard of living for the people who receive social support? This is the basis of our economic model, the essence of the Belarusian social state”. Alexander Lukashenko noted the strengthening of national policies in the world and a shift from the ideas of globalism. “You can honestly and frankly say: the world has gone mad. Last year was difficult for all humanity. But on the other hand, we saw how large and small states in an instant moved from the idea of global development to a strategy of

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national survival,” — the President said. He reminded that not long before, large states, such as the United States and the European Union, had been imposing the ideas of globalism on Belarus and other countries. “As soon as this peril appeared in the form of a pandemic, everyone shriveled, everyone locked down. They do not care about friends and neighbors. Everyone closed their borders. So where is this globalism?” — the Head of State asked the question. The President of Belarus considers the future prospects of the Treaty between the United States of America and the Russian Federation on Measures for the Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms, START III as clouded. “The Treaty on the Elimination of IntermediateRange and Shorter-Range Missiles has been terminated. The prospects for the Treaty on Open Skies are very vague. There is some hope for an end to this spiral and militarypolitical tension inspired by the last-minute consensus between Russia and the United States on the Strategic Offensive Arms Treaty. True, the new president of the United States may cancel it again, it is possible.

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Belarus, of course, supports the expansion of the positive effect of this agreement, but the prospects for START III are absolutely vague,” — said Alexander Lukashenko. According to the President, the NATO troops are being constantly built up in the region, including on the territory adjacent to Belarus, under the guise of the principle of rotation. As a result, the level of foreign military presence in the region is not controlled at all, considers the President of Belarus. The withdrawal of US troops from Europe has been suspended. “At the same time, plans are being openly discussed to counter a phantom menace from the East. We are the first in the East, Russia is behind us. The West has long forgotten its promises that the alliance’s infrastructure will not expand eastward. I was a witness and participant in these promises,”— stressed the President of Belarus. “What’s next, a new arms race? Definitely. World War III?” — asked the Head of State. Alexander Lukashenko focused on the results of Belarus’s development over the years of sovereignty, he stressed the idea that the country had achieved success in

various fields. “The main reference point is expectations, aspirations, opportunities for the development of a modern person. After all, no matter what goals we set, the main resource in achieving them is people, talented and hardworking, devoted to their land. Every Belarusian is responsible for the fate of the country. The main thing is that everyone has equal, favorable starting conditions for becoming successful and changing life in Belarus for the better. This is the essence of justice, the demand for which in the world, as we see, is only growing. This is the meaning of our model of a socially responsible state, which has proven its viability, despite the global sanctions and political pressure, — said the President. — We know the moderators of street activity, what external forces stand behind them, how much money has been pumped into it. We cannot overlook a fact that a certain part of society and the system is vulnerable to Maidan technologies, especially now, when we are in the process of a generational change. This phenomenon is objectively complex: we observe a competition of worldviews, a mismatch of positions on many issues of life, from the economy to raising children. And it is vital to find a solution to the arising contradictions relying upon the wisdom and experience of those who are older. We must prevent a generation gap, like the one that happened during the collapse of the Soviet Union.” Alexander Lukashenko noted that after a quarter of a century of difficult but important path, Belarus was on the verge of new qualitative transformations. “2021 in its fatefulness is comparable to the milestones of the beginning of the 20th century and the middle of the 1990s. But unlike those troubled times, today we have an understanding of the situation and an action plan that gives every chance for successful development,” — noted the head of state. The President outlined a number of tasks, including increasing the efficiency of public administration, ensuring a new level of communication between the authorities and society, creating conditions for bringing out a person’s potential, realizing capabilities, ensuring high-quality economic growth based on initiative, innovation and

FORUM Belarus into the area of their influence. “Today Belarus is the dominant height on the battlefield in the center of Europe,” — said the President. — And a fierce battle is going on for this height. This has always been the case throughout our centuries-old history.” At the same time, according to Alexander Lukashenko, Belarus does not consider any of the states as an enemy, condemns any military conflict and consistently advocates the peaceful settlement of disputes. “Despite all the unfriendly steps of certain foreign forces, I am convinced that the path of confrontation in foreign policy is a dead end,” — he pointed out. — “We are invariably ready to build relations with all countries and unions on the basis of the principles of equality, mutual respect, non-interference in our internal affairs. We are also interested in having balanced and diverse ties with the outside world, primarily economic.” According to the head of state, the socalled global protest has become a reflection of the systemic political, economic, social and spiritual crisis that has gripped the planet: “I think the time has come to raise this topic to the international level before the planet turns upside down, to look at it as a global problem that undermines the foundations of not only the world order, but also the order in individual states.” The President noted that Belarus knew how to bring positions closer and develop solutions to common problems: “A num-

ber of our global peace initiatives, such as digital good-neighborliness, prove it. Practical steps have been taken and they are supported by many states. Take alone five-year work of the trilateral contact group on the peaceful settlement of the situation in southeastern Ukraine. It’s true, we didn’t do a lot of things, but people do not die in thousands as they did before, the war is suspended. Yes, this is basically not our merit, but there is our drop, our share in ending this massacre. Unfortunately, Ukrainian politicians and the country’s leadership recall it less and less (for obvious reasons), but not the Ukrainian people — I am absolutely convinced of this. Ukrainians were and will always remain our neighbors, our friends, our brothers.” In recent years, Minsk hosted the summer session of the Parliamentary Assembly for Security and Cooperation in Europe, a landmark international forum on countering terrorism under the auspices of the UN and OSCE. “At the same time, the analysis of the military-political situation, the state of international and regional security systems demonstrates a steady increase in risks and challenges, including previously unknown ones. Unfortunately, all the most negative forecasts are coming true in the third decade of the 21st century,” — stated Alexander Lukashenko. The President of Belarus spoke about the prospects of integration with Russia:

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modern management. According to the president, it is also necessary to determine the current and long-term priorities of the state in the external relations. The head of state confirmed the unchanging role of Belarus as a donor of stability. “Incredible as it may seem, for many today confrontation is more beneficial than peace and harmony. It is on the conscience of those politicians who put their irrepressible ambitions above human lives,” — said Alexander Lukashenko. — I am sure that this is why our repeated appeals to the world community to stop the escalation of tensions, known as Helsinki-2, are, as they say now, not trendy. As I said recently, “the wrong country suggested”. In these conditions, we confirm the invariable role of Belarus as a donor of stability. Despite everything, Europe remains our common home. You can’t get away from this, we are the center of Europe.” The President assured that Belarus would remain a stable, reliable partner in the field of regional security, ready to actively participate in peacekeeping strategic initiatives: “We, as before, are ready to provide a platform for negotiations on any issues of global and regional security, including arms control.” According to the head of state, one should not assume that the “Belarusian issue” is not important for global geopolitical players — there is a struggle to draw

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cept of national security: “Moreover, our NATO neighbors have already modernized their strategic documents taking into account threats and digital technologies. In addition, the necessary infrastructure has been created in the close proximity of our borders, i.e. cyber troops and a network of NATO cyber centers.” The President expressed confidence that, despite all the risks to national security, information security was becoming the main pain point: “Without diminishing the advantages, opportunities and prospects that the information world has opened to a person, we must pay attention to its downside, i.e. artificial reality that gives a green light to manipulation, deception, crime, indulges base instincts of a person.” BELTA

“We see a great development of cooperation ties through a wider participation of domestic producers in the implementation of national projects in Russia. Today we openly declare our readiness for further substantive work to increase inter-sectoral cooperation within the framework of the Union State, while respecting mutual interests on the basis of equality of the two members of the Union.” The head of state stressed that this process envisages full sovereignty of both countries without the formation of any new supranational bodies. “The entire system of institutional bodies of the Union State has been created, and it has not gone through its term, it is viable, it cannot be put out of commission. That’s the whole answer. Let’s go this way and see what the peoples will say. Maybe they will say that this integration is not enough, let’s go further. But we can’t jump over the stages, we mustn’t overextend the situation either in Russia, or in Belarus,” — said Alexander Lukashenko, noting that huge steps can be taken in this format to integrate with Russia. The head of state noted that today they began to stir up the situation in Russia, and are trying to set the wheels of mass protests in motion. Later, they may try to time them with the Belarusian rallies. This is confirmed by the focus of external forces at disrupting integration projects, the President noted. By the way, Alexander Lukashenko considers it necessary to update the con-

The head of state noted that Belarus has again become an object of political and economic sanction pressure, and calls for economic stranglehold are heard under the slogan of democratization: “I will say the following: after the storming of the Capitol, violent crackdown on protesters in Poland, Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, the imprisonment of people in the dungeons of quarantine, they have neither a political nor moral right to tell us or others how to live and run the state. They need to understand themselves. The fact that individual Western politicians project their narrowly selfish positions onto interstate ones, thereby exposing the security and development issues of the whole of Eastern Europe, is at least irresponsible. We are convinced that escalation is not beneficial to anyone: neither to Belarus, nor to the European Union and the United States of America. Moreover, this is not our choice. It is in our common interests to return to normal political interaction and full-fledged economic cooperation. We, of course, note the statements of the European Union, the United States and other Western countries about supporting the sovereignty of Belarus (which they are constantly talking about). We believe that the effect of these statements will manifest itself in the long-term perspective, and not in the framework of the current aggravations and misunderstandings.” Alexander Lukashenko also addressed Belarusians living abroad: “If you are still

FORUM charitable, since Belarus pays rather big interest for them, the head of state noted. Alexander Lukashenko drew attention to the fact that the constant presence of a person on social networks, forums, and media channels forms Internet addiction: “People simply drop out of real life, they lose their communication skills. What’s even worse, they lose the ability to analyze, because the content and meaning of what is happening around them are shaped by their social networks, messengers and search algorithms. You know who stands behind them. This is well-controlled — the consciousness of people is in the hands of the largest giants of the Internet industry, whose services are

seems right to preserve the state’s status as a stronghold of guaranteed pension support, to gradually introduce elements of a funded pension system that guarantees a future pension increase to each employee. The state will create the necessary infrastructure for this,” — said Alexander Lukashenko. The President also spoke about the prospects for the growth of wages in Belarus. “Agriculture, social, housing and communal services are lagging behind in terms of wages, certain categories of state employees are still not rich. The state is aware of these problems and is working to solve them. I think it is right to raise the level of salaries and the

often used by special agencies of individual states.” The President even cited the term that experts use for this phenomenon — “digital dictatorship”. It means control, blocking unwanted ones through big data management. This fate, reminded Alexander Lukashenko, did not spare even Donald Trump, whose social media accounts were blocked by administrators. Alexander Lukashenko stressed that the state is obliged to make every effort to ensure that the life of a person of age is full and active. The state fulfills its pension obligations, adapting to new realities. Since 2018, the average increase in pensions has outpaced inflation, that is, their size overlaps the price dynamics. In this regard, the President proposed to further improve the pension policy, including a gradual introduction of a funded pension system. “It

level of public respect for social workers. Over the next five years, their incomes will rise significantly,” — said Alexander Lukashenko. — “We will also raise the salary of teachers to the national average. In 2025, doctors will receive 1.5 times the average republican salary.” According to the President, in general, the government is set a task to work on the development of production along with the increase of salaries. At the same time, Alexander Lukashenko noted that the state helped to earn an average of about $500, but people have to make efforts to earn more. “The state should not carry everyone on its shoulders. Figuratively speaking, the state should only support those who can’t walk, who are in a difficult situation. The rest must move on their own, earn for themselves and their families. But at least we must help them do it, create

ANNA ZANKOVICH

Belarusians and if you remember your small motherland, you should understand that even outside your homeland you do not cease to be a part of the Belarusian family. Your every word, deed and even your position directly or indirectly affects the life of the country. This country needs support, including yours, and not destruction.” The President stressed that Belarusians are not parasites, and Belarus is not a satellite country that waits with an outstretched hand for subsidies and loans in exchange for giving up on their own opinion and common sense. “Relations with the European Union are important to us, we have the longest border and a high degree of interdependence of an economic, social, cultural and, finally, political nature. An equally important vector for our diplomacy is the countries of the so-called long-range arc, where China, which is close, despite its geography, and friendly to us, occupies an important place. At the same time, Russia has been and will be our main economic partner and strategic ally,” — said Alexander Lukashenko. The head of state noted that he saw no compelling reason to abandon such a multi-vector approach: “This is an objective reality for any reasonable politician who will ever rule Belarus.” The President also drew attention to the fact that recent events have confirmed the special importance of the BelarusianRussian relations in this multi-vector system. “The assistance of the Russian Federation was very important for us. This position of Russia is not assistance to the current government, but support of the brotherly state and the Belarusian people in the conditions of current and future global transformations,” — said Alexander Lukashenko. “While we stand shoulder to shoulder or back to back, no one will bring us to our knees or bend us. That’s the point.” Responding to the remark that Russia constantly helps Belarus, gives it loans, the President noted that, by doing it, Russia helps itself. After all, finishing production for many sectors of the Russian economy is concentrated in Belarus. Cooperation gives jobs to millions of Russians, and Russian loans are far from being

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conditions so that they can earn. And in the next five-year period we must solve this problem,” — said the head of state. Alexander Lukashenko reminded that the population of Belarus had decreased by 90 thousand people over the past five years. “In order to cultivate the land and live in the country, people are needed, this is the main thing. We need at least 15 million, or better yet 20 million people, but we have not reversed this downward trend. In the future it may become not just a problem, but a disaster. Other densely populated areas will look at us in order to come and live here. We are not opposed to people coming and living with us, but Belarusians should make up the overwhelming majority, so that this land will always be Belarusian. For this, we need to support mothers of childbearing age, that’s all. We must pay special attention to large families and birth rate,” — believes the President. The head of state noted that the economic collapse had been predicted for the Belarusian economy. In reality, the drop in GDP was less than 1% at the end of 2020. For key parameters, the level of 2019 was maintained. Alexander Lukashenko also responded to criticism that the Belarusian economy had allegedly frozen in development. “First, its structure has changed, new industries have appeared and developed, the share of the non-state sector has grown to 50%. Secondly, a large-scale modernization of traditional production facilities has been carried out, now work is underway to ensure the maximum return on investment. The economy does not tolerate revolutions and charlatanism. There shouldn’t be any somersaults. It is necessary to develop evolutionarily,” — Alexander Lukashenko is sure. The President believes that in Belarus it is necessary to develop those industries in which there are competent specialists. As an example, he cited the achievements in the missile industry: “We have created Polonez missile. We were set a task and we fulfilled it. Now we are working on a new missile, the permitted range of which will be greater.” In addition, the next five-year plan includes the creation of industrial clusters. Large companies will be joined by small and medium-sized enterprises to produce the

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necessary components. “This will contribute to import substitution, and for this we must not forget the old school. Let’s develop those directions which we know well. Therefore, we modernize old production facilities and, on this basis, create new ones,” — emphasized the head of state. Alexander Lukashenko warned about the existing risk of “losing identity, letting in models that are not typical of our mentality”. New generations of Belarusians should remember and know their spiritual and cultural origins. “From generation to generation, we passed on our standards of behavior, moral principles based on the works of great writers, film directors, architects, those who were opinion leaders for their generations. The task is to make sure that our children and grandchildren will become the keepers of the cultural code of the nation. We vitally need modern Kolos, Kupal, Korotkevich, Shagal, Ptashuk,” — said the President. The creativity of the classics and works of folk culture, which reflect important milestones in the historical path of Belarusians, should be reflected in modern projects that are of interest for young people, believes Alexander Lukashenko. Because it is a matter of preserving identity and sovereignty, the basis for understanding one’s historical right to be on this earth. “We, Belarusians, have lived on it for thousands of years. Yes, most of its history we were in foreign states, with different peoples.

This experience is the source of our tolerance, friendliness, good attitude to other traditions and beliefs. Many of them have become part of our identity, enriched us culturally and spiritually. We have two native languages: Belarusian and Russian,” — said the Head of State. The connection between the two cultures goes back far into the depths of the centuries, therefore, it is impossible to turn down the part “where there is a lot of our, Belarusian soul”. “Therefore, the Belarusian and Russian languages will always be the property of our nation. We will not persecute people and press them not to speak Russian,” — stressed Alexander Lukashenko. The head of state is convinced that Belarus should remain a presidential republic. According to Alexander Lukashenko, the country should remain this way, including when he resigns as the President. “I am for constitutional reform. Throughout the year, on dialogue platforms, everywhere we will discuss this. Every step of change. But I am firmly convinced that our country must remain a presidential republic. Just get it right what I will say now: our country should be a presidential republic even without Lukashenko. It will be without Lukashenko- not today, but tomorrow, the day after tomorrow. No matter how heroic I am, the time will come - other people will come, — said the head of state. — I understand that all the fuss is due to the

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actual person as the President of Belarus. Who is this secret for? I am a very determined person, not a coward. I don’t fear for my skin, I don’t have any riches (don’t believe that I took something from someone, I’ve been in power for a quarter of a century — and no one has found anything anywhere, although with the current system one can detect even a penny). I have nothing but Belarus, I have invested my best years in this country. I cannot be intimidated. I didn’t make myself a hero when I ran down the street with a machine gun. I was just determined. I knew and saw what all that could lead to. And this sobered many people. This is the position of my children, my relatives and friends. I will not give my country to anyone.” Alexander Lukashenko named the main conditions for leaving power, and proposed making the All-Belarusian People’s Assembly a stabilizer for the transition period. “My main condition for leaving power is that there is peace, order in the country, no protest actions, not turning the country upside down, expressing an opinion within the law,” said the head of state. — The second condition: if it turns out that wrong people come to power, who have different views — not a hair must be off the head of the current President’s supporters. Therefore, I proposed to make the All-Belarusian People’s Assembly a constitutional body. Grant it authority. If this

social contract that we conclude is violated, the national assembly will have all the power. You will. Even without me. And the All-Belarusian People’s Assembly (it will be elected even in a more responsible way) will have powers. It should be a stabilizer for the transition period. What any other body do you see? Maybe we’ll come up with something else in the process of drafting the Constitution. But in this period of generational change, a change of power, we must have a clear safety net so as not to lose the country,” — said the President. Alexander Lukashenko believes that the All-Belarusian People’s Assembly should be granted the authority to determine the development strategy of the Belarusian society: “This will be a law for all citizens of the country and for the head of state, and for the parliament, and for others. What kind of authority? Sovereignty, independence of our country, defense, combat capability, and so on. Only the main ones. Without interference in managing and executive functions in the state. This will be the responsibility of the authorities and the head of state.” At the same time, the President noted that it is natural for a new generation to come to power, and this should be determined by the people in fair and open elections after specifying the necessary laws and the Constitution. “I understand that we are living in a period of transition. We need to make sure that a new generation comes to

power. It’s unavoidable. The people must decide on the new generation representatives who will come to power,” — noted the Head of State. Alexander Lukashenko said that for this it would be necessary to hold elections honestly, without giving up positions: “The people must decide on what they want. There will be an ironclad social contract that fair, open (under the control of whoever wants it) elections should be the law for everyone. If only anyone makes some kind of move after this, they will receive a very tough answer. We, my generation of politicians, must ensure it for the Belarusian people. And only time will tell the future role of the current President and many of you.” Of course, other participants of the meeting also made speeches at the forum. In particular, Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko spoke about detailed plans for the development of the country’s economy. According to him, the basis of the policy of economic growth is the stimulation of domestic consumption and rational import substitution, the deployment of a new investment cycle, i.e. reducing the risk and costs of investors, creating conditions for attracting longterm money to the economy, creating a developed infrastructure in all regions of the country, implementing an export strategy aimed at introducing tools to support exporters. “I am sure that all the participants in the meeting agree that the de-industrialization of Belarus cannot be tolerated,” — said the prime minister. In his opinion, it is necessary to create and develop at least five new high-tech industries and directions. Among them it is the electrical industry that is at the heart of the national electric transport program. “We will continue to install domestic electric charging stations. By the end of the five-year plan, a third of urban public transport will become electric,” — stressed Roman Golovchenko. Another area is bioindustry. Over the past three years, according to the prime minister, over 150 new biotechnologies have been developed. The Government approved the Strategy for the Development of Pharmaceuticals. Robots have become a reality in the industry. The fifth industry

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FORUM in his opinion, is the main reason for the internal political problems in the country. “What’s next and what is the way out? In my opinion, striving of Belarus for neutrality, which is enshrined in the Constitution, does not correspond to the current situation. In

implement 47 projects in high-tech sectors with an investment volume of 19 billion rubles. Traditional industries will develop on a new technological base and digital basis. “Over the course of the five-year plan, we plan to attract more than 80 billion rubles to the industry and implement more than 500 investment projects,” — said Roman Golovchenko. In his opinion, agriculture should become a profitable business, efficient use of raw material zones will continue, and production facilities will be built. For the first time, the National Infrastructure Plan of Belarus has been formed to facilitate the deployment of the investment cycle. It includes about 1000 projects with funding of 28 billion rubles. The Ministr y of Foreign Affairs undertakes to develop a new concept of Belarus’ foreign policy. Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei said this in his speech at the All-Belarusian People’s Assembly. Belarus, as he said, should not be viewed as a bridge between something, but as its own land and its own coast. The minister acknowledged that the country is currently on a geopolitical rift between East and West. The clash of these multidirectional large world players,

the modern globalized world, which is permeated with internationalization, neutrality in its classical understanding does not exist. It is proposed to take this aspect into account when working on amendments to the Basic Law of our country,” — stressed Vladimir Makei. He noted that Belarus should continue to pursue its multi-vector foreign policy. But such a course does not exclude the advantage of one direction. “Russia has always been, is and will be our strategic partner, therefore the main vector of our development will be directed at interaction with this country and the postSoviet states. Moreover, I will say, perhaps, a seditious thing in the course of a discussion about the advisability of adjusting the export formula a third-a third-a third in modern realities. Objectively, in the foreign economic activity of any state, neighboring countries, and particularly the powerful ones, are of primary importance,” — the minister said, proposing to concentrate half of exports on the vector of post-Soviet countries. According to him, Belarus stands for partnership between the European Union and the EAEU, which is necessary not only for the economic development,

ANNA ZANKOVICH

to be developed is the production of composite materials. “This is a new page for the future. The products will allow replacing metal without coming short of quality,” — the prime minister emphasized. He noted that the government was planning to

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but also for minimization of conflict potential. “We proceed from the premise that there can be no dominant force either in the region or in the world. Each state must have a voice and must be heard,” — stressed the head of the foreign policy department. Metropolitan of Minsk and Zaslavl, Patriarchal Exarch of All Belarus Benjamin said that increased political instability in the world was added to the coronavirus pandemic and today’s events resemble a spiritual and social crisis on the eve of the First World War. “Today the Belarusian society stands at a crossroads. We have to make a choice and this choice must be made independently and responsibly, guided not by emotions and passions, but by reason and awareness of the mistakes we have made,” — said the Metropolitan. He noted that the Belarusian Orthodox Church supports the provisions of the country’s development program aimed at strengthening the traditional institution of the family, social support for people, preserving the traditional values of the people, and improving the spiritual and moral education of the younger generation. In turn, Natalia Karpovich, Deputy Chairperson of the Constitutional Court, stated that processes in the world and within the country require the development of a constitutional model that meets the challenges of the era, and amendments are necessary for the further development of Belarus: “There is no blueprint, an optimal model for changing the Constitution, and it’s impossible to have one... I will specify a tendency common to all countries, i.e. constitutional continuity. It manifests itself in the protection of constitutional values, the preservation of basic state institutions.” According to Natalia Karpovich, the amendments to the Constitution should promote social progress, modernization of society, be based on digitalization, the achievements of science and technology. In her opinion, the dialogue platforms (on which the amendments to the Basic Law of the country were discussed) showed that Belarusians want to strengthen the legal basis of their lives and the future of their children. “We support the initiative of the Head of State to give the All-Belarusian

FORUM opment of the Belarusian society, identified the changes that are necessary for the fullest possible participation of the population in taking state decisions. This is the redistribution of powers between the branches of government, and the constitutional status of the All-Belarusian People’s Assembly, strengthening of local self-government, increasing the role of public structures in the political life of the country,” — the Head of State listed and stressed that everything that was voiced at the Assembly is not a dogma, but will be analyzed and possibly supplemented. Its path that the country has determined for this period, is well-grounded, said Alexander Lukashenko, but there is no guarantee that it will not be updated, since no one knows what global challenge will appear tomorrow. “We will strive to go this way, but there can be any challenges in life, and we must be ready for this,” — he explained. — But the uncertainties are colossal and it is impossible to say that we are so heroic, we will march past and decide everything. In these moments of uncertainty of our future, we must be careful and cautious more than ever, as well as united. This is not the right time to break and crumble. Alexander Lukashenko noted that the new Constitution should be developed and adopted within a year, and drew attention

to the fact that after its adoption, it will be necessary to amend a large amount of normative legal acts. He also spoke about proposals to remove the provision on neutrality of Belarus from the Constitution: “A fundamental issue was raised, primarily for the President. Various people, military and non-military, proposed to constitutionally enshrine the principle opposite to neutrality. There is no neutrality, and, to be honest, we did not pursue a course that would be rigidly connected with neutrality. This is a constitutional provision. Life was changing, and we had to adapt to it, believing that it is impossible to constantly change the Constitution. Therefore, apparently, we need to discuss this issue with experts and outline these requirements in a different way.” But first, the concept of national security must be adopted, said the head of state. In general, announcing the 6th All-Belarusian People’s Assembly closed, Alexander Lukashenko promised to continue the dialogue on the issues raised. “I promise you that it will be of ramified and deep character in all directions. We will discuss global problems with you. First of all, on the reorganization of our society, the formation of a new legislative base of our state,” — said the President. By Vladimir Velikhov

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People’s Assembly the status of a constitutional body. The Constitutional Court proposes a variant of such a norm of the Basic Law,” — stated the judge. In the President’s speech, she noted the key areas for change, i.e. enhancement of the role of local authorities, political structures of society. In his concluding speech, the President of Belarus, first of all, thanked the participants of the 6th All-Belarusian People’s Assembly for their active, responsible and thoughtful approach to decisions and discussions of vital issues for the country. “The Forum showed a high demand from society to preserve the system of values and priorities,” — the President noted. “This suggests that over the years of independence we have managed to build a system based on the inviolability of the country’s sovereignty, which rests on traditions, patriotism, people’s desire for peace.” As a sovereign state, Belarus is still open to mutually beneficial cooperation with the whole world, the head of state emphasized. At the same time, it will not change the course towards building the Union of Belarus and Russia and Eurasian integration. Fraternal Russia and great China will remain our strategic partners, and not only economic ones, Alexander Lukashenko noted. “We discussed the directions for the further devel-

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TRENDS

SUCH OPTIMISTIC REALITY, or Life reflected by statistics Today it is very important to understand how our society and economy look in terms of quantity. In general, one cannot do without such information when it comes time to draw up short- and long-term plans for the country’s development. On the whole, a constant increase in the amount of information has become the trend of our time: specialists have an increasing demand for figures, which are the basis for taking the most important decisions in the field of economy, social sector and state building in general, citizens have a need to understand and analyze facts and events. Today international standards are such that it’s not enough to assess, for example, only the gross domestic product and calculate the average salary in the country — the reality requires the collection and analysis of a huge amount of data on the state and society activities.

So, let’s start with the results of the latest population census, conducted in 2019. There are 9 million 413 thousand of us in total, including 4 million 351 thousand men and 5 million 62 thousand women. As well as for other European countries, the issue of population aging is urgent for Belarus. The 2019 census shows that over the past 10 years, the average age of the country’s residents has increased by 1.2 years and is 40.7 years. Representatives of 156 nationalities live in Belarus today. The most numerous are Belarusians — 84.9 percent (according to the 2009 population census — 83.7 percent), Russians, Poles and Ukrainians. As for good trends, it is definitely worth noting that recently the number of graduates in Belarus has grown significantly. To be more precise, every fourth resident of the country today has a higher education, almost every third has a specialized secondary education. For comparison: in 2009 it was every fifth and fourth, respectively. If we consider the situation through a social cross-section, undoubtedly, the data on the marital status of Belarusians have become stable, which indicates that traditional family relations are preserved in the country. According to the results of the 2019 census, at the age of 15 and over, 62 percent of men and 53 percent of women are in a registered marriage or in unregistered relationships, almost the same numbers as in 2009 (62 percent of men and 52 percent of women). Let us ask ourselves the following question: what is the share of small and medium-sized businesses in the overall structure of the country’s economy in recent years, how intensively is it developing, in particular, in the regions? It turns out that today small businesses form about a quarter of the country’s GDP, and their share increased from 23.4 percent in 2015 to 25.6 in 2019. At the same time, small enterprises and micro-organizations form more than half of the gross added value of small and mediumsized enterprises in the country. As for the regions, there has been a stable trend of growth in the share of small businesses in the gross regional product in

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Minsk, Brest, Mogilev regions and the city of Minsk over the past five years. At the end of 2019, above the national average (25.6 percent) contribution of small and medium-sized businesses to the formation of the regional economy was traditionally noted in Minsk and the Minsk region: 44 and 32.3 percent, respectively. At the same time, the most intensive growth was in the capital — additional 4.4 percent (in 2015–39.6). Statistical indicators show that the past year was quite difficult for foreign economic activity, i. e. the problems were related to instability in the financial market, coronavirus, and so on. For these reasons, the decline in exports was inevitable, but it should be noted that the decline was at a slower pace than imports. Following the results of 11 months of the last year, the country reached a positive balance of $2 billion, which is a very good result for us. In physical terms, during this period, exports decreased by only 1.7 percent. Even in such hard times, our enterprises mostly worked not for a warehouse, but for export, which at the end of the year resulted in a decrease in finished product stock. The latest statistics show that we are currently cooperating with more than 200 countries on export-import supplies. The geography of Belarusian exports is constantly expanding. Over the

TRENDS past five years, export volumes to the countries of the Eurasian Economic Union, Ukraine, Poland, Brazil, Uzbekistan, and the USA have grown. Taking into account the conclusion of specialists and experts, export-orientated businesses have been assigned an urgent task to export in three directions in equal shares: one third to the EAEU countries, one third to the European Union and one third to other countries. Enterprises are significantly increasing their export volumes to the Asian market: to China, Mongolia, Afghanistan, Malaysia, Thailand. And this is despite the existing global problems. Certainly, it is interesting to know how the coronavirus situation affected the employment of the population. According to statistics, decisions at the highest state level on prevention of the shutdown of enterprises during the pandemic have produced results. The country maintains a high level of the population employment — 67.5 percent, especially among citizens of the productive age — 83 percent. In 2019 Belarus ranked fifth in the world for the employment level (database of the International Labor Organization), which is a fairly high result. At the same time, the employment rate of working age women is slightly higher than that of men, and having children does not interfere with career progress: among working age women-leaders, more than half have children under 18. The average employment age is 41. Moreover, every fourth is under 30. And the youngest is the IT-technology sector, in which 40 percent of employees are under 30. According to the status in employment, hired employees prevail in the country, a significant part of them are contract workers. As for unemployment, in 2020 its level in Belarus, according to the methodology of the International Labor Organization, amounted to 4 percent of the labor force. A year ago, this indicator was 4.2 percent. A Belarusian unemployed is usually a male. The average age of the unemployed is 37 years, unmarried, education is vocational training. The unemployment rate for men of working age is 4.8 percent, for women — 3.2 percent. Is it interesting to know how much the living standards of Belarusians have changed in comparison with the previous periods? It turned out, the monetary incomes of the population, even

with account of a certain rise in prices over the past five years, increased by 14.4 percent. In 2020, according to the sampling analysis of living standards, food accounted for about 39 percent of all consumption expenditures of the average household. This is less than it used to be, for example, in 2015 it was 42 percent, while the level of consumption of basic food products changed little, if at all. As it is commonly known, a characteristic feature of modern society is the active use of information and communication technologies by the population. So, today 71.2 percent of households have a personal computer, while in 2015 it was 63.1 percent. And 85.1 percent of people are Internet users (as compared to 67.3 in 2015). Still, is the demographic situation in Belarus a cause for concern? Let’s start with good. According to the data of the National Statistical Committee, a positive trend has been observed recently: almost every fifth inhabitant of the country is in the age group 0–15 years. Its number has increased over 10 years by 172.6 thousand people. This indicates the effective implementation of programs aimed at improvement of the demographic situation. At the same time, today one can observe downfall in the birth of the first and second child. This is due to the decrease in the number of women of reproductive age, the intensity of childbearing, as well as the influence of the trends that are very popular in Western Europe, when young people put financial position and career progress first, and the issue of having children is postponed, therefore, the age of women giving first birth increases. At the same time, the measures taken by the state in Belarus to support large families contribute to an increase in the birth rate among women aged 40–44. In 2019, they gave birth to almost twice as many children as in 2010, and more than 52 percent of these children were third and subsequent. Nationwide, the proportion of children born third and subsequent has increased over the past five years by almost 40 percent. You must admit that these are very optimistic statistical data. As well as the reality itself. Aleksey Fedosov

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COMMUNICATIONS

BOOK UNITES PEOPLE This kind of modern thesis was amply demonstrated by the XXVIII Minsk International Book Fair, which is traditionally held in February in the Belarusian capital 2021 is the year of the 30th anniversary since the formation of the Commonwealth of Independent States. Therefore, the Commonwealth of Independent States was declared to be the Central Exhibitor of the XXVIII Minsk International Book Fair. By the way, the Republic of Belarus presides in the CIS in this anniversary year. It should be noted that in different years Russia, Ukraine, Israel, Kazakhstan, France, Germany, Venezuela, China, Armenia, Great Britain, Serbia, and the USA became the Central Exhibitor of Minsk Book Fair. Each country presented its book publishing in the capital of Belarus, brought new formats to the exhibition, provided a bright presentation of its country, which invariably attracted numerous visitors to the Minsk exhibition. The United States of America, for example, invited visitors to its world of books through a “roadside cafe”. The Russian Federation surprised by the abundance of creative book novelties and their presentation by famous authors, offered the visitors to try themselves in the audiobook creation. The Republic of Serbia drew attention to its stand by presentation of new books in combination with a youth subculture — graffiti. 2021 was no exception: new names, new formats, new projects awaited the book lovers. So, the main exhibitor, i. e. the Commonwealth of Independent States, predetermined the motto of the current Minsk exhibition: “Book unites people and countries”. And its central exposition was symbolically designed in the style of a common house, which, of course, consists of rooms. The living room, for example, was the CIS exhibition area, where visitors got acquainted with those publications that won the Grand Prix of the CIS “The Art of the Book” international competition over a period of 17 years of its time frame. Besides, during the exhibition, the Commonwealth countries widely demonstrated their most striking book projects at their stands. The tour of the exhibition central exposition was very entertaining. One of the rooms is the writer’s study-room. There the organizers presented the best books of all 11 CIS countries on his-

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tory, culture and art. Interesting meetings of writers and visitors of the exhibition were held there. And this is a children’s room. Traditionally, children’s books are in great demanded with the visitors of the exhibition, as well as bookstores. This exhibition space gave the opportunity for parents with children not only to see novelty books, learn about the creation of books, but also to enjoy themselves. And, of course, it was impossible to pass by the impromptu kitchen, which became the most “bookish part” of the central exhibition area. The maximum number of Belarusian books published in 2020 was presented there. By the way, about 8200 books were published in the country that year. Exhibition visitors had an excellent opportunity to talk with the authors of books, could

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immerse themselves in the creative process of writing. On the same exhibition area, the selection of projects was held for the priority publication by state publishing house. All of them had won the literary startup LitUP launched in January. LitUp invited everyone to try their hand at lighting their creative star during the exhibition. Minsk International Book Fair brings together dozens of countries every year. Due to the epidemiological situation in the world 2021 became special, but the organizers managed to hold exhibition events much more widely thanks to online formats. Traditionally, the international symposium “The Writer and Time” invited to its discussion platforms creative people — representatives of the writers’ communities of all CIS countries, near and far abroad,

from regional centers, from Borisov, the cultural capital of Belarus in 2021. The symposium was broadcast on the youtube channel, where one could address questions directly to the participants. Their speeches at the symposium are planned to be published in electronic and printed formats. In 2021 Belarus is rich in anniversaries of Belarusian writers, which was the reason for the presentation of a large number of book projects from Belarusian publishers, immersion of Minsk exhibition visitors in their works. Traditionally, the organizers provided the work of a poetry bus, which made it possible for everyone to get to the exhibition site and listen to the works of the authors live during the trip. In fact, the poetry bus became a real space for creativity for many writers. On the central stage, by tradition, there were presentations of the most significant book projects, awarding of the winners of the National Competition “The Art of the Book”, as well as the winners of the international competition for young writers “Pershatsvet”. It should be mentioned that during the XXVIII Minsk International Book Fair, Minsk theaters and cinemas, TV channels, showed films and performances based on the works of both famous Belarusian and foreign writers. One of the objectives that the Minsk book exhibition pursues from year to year is the promotion of reading among children and adolescents. In this regard, during the current exhibition, the Belarusian publishing house “Narodnaya Asveta” held an impromptu “sixth school day”, which was attended by many teachers and their students. Within the same event, various educational activities were held, e. g. “Continue the proverb” competition. For the smallest visitors, aged from three to seven, a drawing contest “The Most Smiling Characters” was held. The book that received the biggest number of emoticons, was raffled off on the last day of the exhibition. By the way, they did not forget about children with disabilities, having prepared interesting book gifts for them. In general, the XXVIII Minsk International Book Fair differed from the previous ones. Of course, the coronavirus pandemic did its part. Perhaps, due to the obligation to observe anti-epidemic measures at the current exhibition, large foreign exhibitors were not widely represented. Meanwhile, the organizers had time to think over the format of the exhibition. After all, many Minskers could visit it and talk to publishers only in the evening. Therefore, the working hours were changed: every day it worked an hour longer. As a result, it became much easier to visit the exhibition. Such measures paid off. The number of those wishing to come to a meeting with a book, and in many cases with its author, markedly increased. And this, undoubtedly, was for the benefit of the entire interested audience. Alexander Pimenov

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PRESENTATION

DEDICATED TO ALISHER NAVOI Friendly roundtable participants

A festive presentation of the unique book by Alisher Navoi “Beloved Hearts”, which was translated into Belarusian, was held at the Executive Committee of the Commonwealth of Independent States. Thus, the 580th anniversary of the birth of the legendary educator was solemnly celebrated in Belarus. And a few days earlier, representatives of the Uzbek diaspora and the Belarusian creative community laid flowers at his monument on behalf of the Embassy of Uzbekistan in Belarus.

Interview of Daniyar Abidov, the Counsellor of the Embassy of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the Republic of Belarus, for journalists

Speaker — Shukhrat Sirozhiddinov, rector of Tashkent State University of the Uzbek language and literature

Dmitry Radkevich, Daniyar Abidov, Abu-Bekir Shabanovich and Vitaly Busko. Commemorative picture.

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On that February day, when the flowers were laid, the weather was not comfortable: it was snowy and frosty. But despite the weather conditions, the atmosphere at the monument to the great Uzbek thinker was like an island of warmth. The speakers were sincere, soulful. — We are glad that in Minsk, in the center of the city, there is an opportunity to get acquainted with our culture, with the monument to Alisher Navoi — a native creator both for Uzbekistan and the whole world, — said the Counsellor of the Embassy of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the Republic of Belarus Daniyar Abidov. — We appreciate that along with officials, representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus and the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus the writers and Uzbek youth studying in Minsk have come here. At this impromptu rally, the laureate of the State Prize of Belarus, poet Nikolai Metlitsky, read his translations of Alisher Navoi’s works. An Uzbek student, future dentist Mukhabaton Abdulazhanova recited one of Novoi’s classic works in the poet’s native language.

The celebration of Alisher Navoi’s anniversary turned into a broad cultural and educational program in Minsk. On February 17, the 580th anniversary of the poet’s birth was celebrated at the Executive Committee of the Commonwealth of Independent States with the presentation of the book “Beloved Hearts” translated into Belarusian.

PRESENTATION This book, written by the poet at the end of his life, is a kind of mirror of his life experience, a kind of code of honor and ethics of the younger generation. Deputy Chairman of the CIS Executive Committee Beketzhan Zhumakhanov addressed the audience with a welcoming speech. He noted that the anniversary of Alisher Navoi, an outstanding representative of the Eastern Renaissance era, was a significant event for the entire Commonwealth, which unites countries of differ-

Dmitry Radkevich, translator of the book into Belarusian, head of the Council of Imams of Belarus

ent civilizational origins. He stressed that the CIS attached great importance to such events that act as a driving force, an essential factor in the preservation of historical memory, and promotion of spiritual heritage. Daniyar Abidov, the Counselor of the Embassy of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the Republic of Belarus, spoke about the importance of the invaluable heritage of Alisher Navoi for the Uzbek people and the celebration of his anniversary. In particular, he said that in recent years, a largescale work had been carried out on the profound study of Alisher Navoi’s works. For that reason the International Public Fund named after him was set up, and in

accordance with the Resolution of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, the 580th anniversary of the poet is widely celebrated in the country and abroad. And here it is appropriate to recall the interview of Daniyar Tajievich to our magazine “The language of war has become the language of gazelles.” In it, he called Alisher Navoi “the sun of the nation”. This is what the Turkic-speaking peoples say about the great poet, philosopher and statesman. And as we know, there is no life without the sun. Besides, we learned that Navoi was a Sufi. And the main thing for Sufis who wanted to bring up an ideal person is the search for the meaning of life… And it is also important that his works affirm the value of spiritual life. Sergei Rachkov, Chairperson of the Standing Commission of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus for Foreign Affairs and National Security, Shukhrat Sirozhiddinov, rector of Tashkent State University of the Uzbek language and literature, Dmitry Radkevich, translator of the book into Belarusian, head of Council of Imams of Belarus, ambassadors and permanent representatives of the CIS countries also spoke at the presentation. In the speeches, it was emphasized that in his immortal works Alisher Navoi glorified high ideals of humanism and universal human values, making use of the enormous opportunities, wealth and beauty of his native language, therefore he firmly established himself in the hearts of millions of readers. Poems and extracts from the works of Alisher Navoi were recited during the event, and an exhibition of books and presentation of slides dedicated to his work was organized in the lobby of the Executive Committee building. All the present received Alisher Navoi’s books as a gift. The event was organized by the Embassy of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the Republic of Belarus, the Presidential Library of the Republic of Belarus, the CIS Executive Committee.

Presidential Library of the Republic of Belarus

Sergey Shichko, Mikhalina Cherkashina

anniversary celebrant was prepared for the

Anniversary business card

Exhibition of books from the funds of the

Newspaper publications about Alisher Navoi

A visual presentation dedicated to the festive event

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

BELTA

COOPERATION

BUSINESS MOOD 29 years ago, at the beginning of 1992, diplomatic relations between our countries were established. Since then, much has changed, but the vector of fruitful cooperation between Minsk and Beijing remains unchanged. China is a strategic partner of Belarus. Mutually beneficial cooperation is developing in many areas, a number of important projects are being implemented. On August 31, 2015, a key Presidential Directive No. 5 “On the development of bilateral relations between the Republic of Belarus and the People’s Republic of China” was signed. What makes the cooperation between countries special?

Sincere friendship The past year was filled with events that strengthened bilateral relations and brought them to a higher level. “Despite the coronavirus pandemic and the slowdown in business activity in the world, cooperation between the Republic of Belarus and the People’s Republic of China is developing comprehensively and dynamically, Belarusian-Chinese political, economic and humanitarian contacts are actively maintained,” — the embassy said.

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

“Being reliable strategic partners, Belarus and China actively support each other on various issues in the international arena,” — the embassy noted. “The true testimony of sincere friendship and mutual assistance was granting humanitarian aid to each other in the difficult times of combating COVID‑19. Belarus came to China’s aid on January 30 and February 6 of the last year (in fact, the first in the world), sending two planes with humanitarian aid for combating the spread of the coronavirus. And in April, May, December 2020, medicines were delivered from

China to Belarus, including assistance from the government, 21 regions and many businesses of China,” — the embassy said. It is noteworthy that the first person to congratulate Alexander Lukashenko on his victory in the presidential election was Xi Jinping, the President of the People’s Republic of China. According to him, Belarus and China are “iron brothers and all-weather partners”. “I attach great importance to the development of the ChineseBelarusian relations and appreciate the good working relationship and personal

COOPERATION The chairperson of the Chinese part of the Intergovernmental Cooperation Committee Guo Shengkun confirmed the priority and unchallenged quality of the implementation in Belarus of two sports facilities, i. e. a national football stadium and an international swimming pool, thanks to the technical and economic assistance from China. “The parties also discussed the need to increase the balance of Chinese credit lines in the amount of about $4 billion for specific projects on the development of social and transport infrastructure in order to constantly improve the living standards of the Belarusian population,” — the government said in a statement.

Growth driver

friendship with you,” — the message of the Chinese president says.

Access platform Last month Belarus and China created a platform for testing access to the Chinese market. According to the press service of the government, First Deputy Prime Minister of Belarus Nikolai Snopkov commented on the results of a video conference held in mid-December at a meeting of the Belarusian-Chinese intergovernmental commission on cooperation. According to the First Deputy Prime Minister, the decisions made during the meeting are of a deep strategic nature, which reveals the potential of bilateral cooperation. “The creation of the Commission on customs and quarantine cooperation within the intergovernmental commission is an exclusive option. This is a practical platform for working out all the issues of access to the Chinese markets, veterinary medicine, quarantine supervision and supply chains,” — said Nikolai Snopkov.

Belarus considers agricultural supplies to China as a new export driver, Nikolai Snopkov said at the meeting of the intergovernmental commission. “In trade cooperation with China, I would like to note a positive trend associated with a change in the Belarusian exports structure: the range of products is expanding, dependence on the export of potash fertilizers is decreasing. The volume of supplies of Belarusian agricultural products to China is gradually growing,” — Nikolai Snopkov said. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Food, the volume of supplies to China in January-November of the last year amounted to $238.7 million. As for the development of trade and economic cooperation for the near future, the First Deputy Prime Minister outlined a number of priorities, including the active promotion of Belarusian exports to China, expansion of admission of new categories of Belarusian beef to the Chinese market, acceleration of the Belarusian dry baby food accreditation, increase in the sugar supply quota to China. The key points are the use of electronic trading platforms as a promising mechanism for bilateral trade, the inclusion of Belarusian products in the state reserve of China, the creation of joint ventures in China for the Belarusian raw materials processing, simplification of trade procedures and elimination of trade barriers, and optimization of financial settlement mechanisms.

Record turnover “China continues to maintain the status of the third largest trade partner of Belarus. According to our statistics, trade between China and Belarus in 2019 reached a record level, having increased by 58%. Despite the impact of the pandemic and other negative global factors, from January to the end of November 2020, the volume of bilateral trade increased by 9.2 percent. The annual trade turnover will become a new historical record,” — said Zhao Qiuyan, Counselor for Trade and Economic Affairs of the Chinese embassy in Belarus. According to her, trade in agricultural products between China and Belarus has become a new feature of bilateral trade in new conditions. From January to the end of November 2020, the volume of trade in agricultural products between the two countries increased by 61.6% compared to the same period in 2019. At the same time, Belarusian exports increased by 83.2%, while imports from China decreased by 12.6%. Zhao Qiuyan noted that the China International Import Exhibition is gradually becoming an important platform for the increase of the Belarusian products importance in the Chinese market. So, last November, Belarusian companies engaged in food industry and trade in services signed agreements on the purchase of goods and services for more than $31 million. “Cooperation in the investment sphere between the two countries has also produced good results. According to Chinese statistics, from January to November 2020, the volume of direct investments of Chinese companies in the Belarusian economy increased by 40% compared to the same period last year,” — said the Counselor for Trade and Economic Affairs.

Model project One of the most important joint projects is the Great Stone Sino-Belarusian Industrial Park, which the President of China called a model project. According to Dmitry Krutoi, the Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration, despite the difficult

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

COOPERATION situation caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the park was very successful last year. “Against the background of other economic sectors, the results are quite high: $75 million in exports, $300 million in investments, almost a thousand jobs have been created with the average salary of 2.5 thousand rubles” — said Dmitry Krutoi. “Of 68 registered residents of the park today, 12 belong to the field of science, innovation, new, absolutely unique developments. This makes up almost 20%. If this proportion was observed in the investment structure of our economy, I think we would have a completely different return and a different quality of the investment process in the republic. The park was created for the implementation of projects mainly of the fifth and sixth deposits, the latest developments and innovations, and it carries out its mission,” — said Dmitry Krutoi.

From automobiles to biotechnologies

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CJSC Belgee, a company created by the Chinese company Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, Belarusian BelAZ and other partners, will fill the gap in the production of motor cars in Belarus. “The project is developing well, in total last year Belgee sold 23 thousand cars, 9.2 thousand of them in Belarus and about 15 thousand in other countries,” — said Zhao Qiuyan. She also drew attention to the fact that the Chinese corporation Midea Group and the Belarusian company “Horizont” have created a joint venture for the assembly of household appliances in the free economic zone of the Belarusian capital. The sales network of their products covers the Eurasian Economic Union and the CIS countries, some products are also sold in Europe. Last year the sales of the company reached of $21 million. Construction work on the project “Organization of high-tech full-cycle agro-industrial production”, the investor and general

contractor of which is a Chinese company, is well underway. “After the completion, it will become the first amino acid production plant in Belarus. This is an important strategic project in the field of biotechnology in Belarus, which is expected to be completed in the first half of this year,” — said the Counselor of the Chinese embassy. Zhao Qiuyan also said that China and Belarus intend to exchange notes between the governments in the near future to sign the third stage of municipal housing construction project in Belarus with the help of China. “Construction will begin in the first half of

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

this year. Within two years, 20 houses with 1,166 apartments will be built in six regions of Belarus,” — she explained. At the first two stages of the project, 38 houses with 3,286 apartments were built in six regions and Minsk, which improved the living conditions of more than 10,000 people. Zakhar Burak

Verbatim Earlier, Alexander Lukashenko, the President of Belarus had a telephone conversation with Xi Jinping, the President of the People’s Republic of China. The heads of state exchanged congratulations on the anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Belarus and China (the conversation took place by this sign), and also discussed in detail various areas of cooperation, said the press service of the Belarusian leader. Alexander Lukashenko thanked the President of the People’s Republic of China for supporting Belarus in the international arena. As the Chinese leader noted in this context, only the people can decide and determine the future of their country. In general, the strategic partners Belarus and China will jointly confront external threats. Belarus will also continue to support China on all key issues. Much attention in the conversation was paid to the situation with the COVID‑19 pandemic. The parties exchanged information on the measures taken to stop the spread of the infection. According to the Chinese leader, there is no reason to calm down yet. China has confirmed its readiness to supply the required amount of COVID‑19 vaccine to Belarus. The President of Belarus and the President of the People’s Republic of China noted the growth of bilateral trade as a positive fact. They noted with satisfaction that economic slowdown was averted even in the difficult conditions of the pandemic and the decline in business activity. The supplies of Belarusian agricultural products to the Chinese market served as an example. In general, the main growth points are food products and timber-ware. An application for Belarusian export, which includes 88 items of agricultural, mechanical engineering and chemical industry products, has been successfully completed. The leaders also discussed an increase in purchases of potash fertilizers in China. The Chinese partners responded to the request of the Belarusian side with their readiness to work on this issue. The focus was also on further development and implementation of the potential of the Great Stone Industrial Park, which is a key element of Belarus’ participation in the Belt and Road Initiative. Alexander Lukashenko assured that Belarus will traditionally be an active participant of the initiative. In order to develop interregional cooperation, it is proposed to announce the Year of Regions of Belarus and China and hold it within three years, from 2021 to 2023. The President of Belarus and the President of the People’s Republic of China also discussed the issue of another personal meeting. On this issue, the positions coincide: as soon as the situation with the pandemic improves slightly, such a meeting will be held for the discussion of all issues.

DIALOGUE OF CULTURES

TO THE BENEFIT OF BOTH COUNTRIES Journalist Inessa Pleskachevskaya met with Anatoly Tozik, the Chairman of the Belarus-China Friendship Society, Director of the Republican Confucius Institute of Sinology at BSU, former ambassador of Belarus to China. ZVIAZDA.BY

oday, a four-storey building in the very center of Minsk, on 11 Revolyutsionnaya Street, is difficult to recognize: a couple of years ago, people quickly ran past this half-abandoned building, and now it is a renovated light house with large windows and a unique library. Unique because it was donated by the press office of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China, and this is the most interesting library on China in our country. In the building there are a lot more unique things related to China. No wonder as the Republican Confucius Institute of Sinology at BSU (RCIS) is located there. I came there to talk with its director Anatoly Afanasyevich Tozik, whom I have known since his work as the Ambassador of the Republic of Belarus to China. Interest in China also unites us today. Everyone has their own personal history of the appearance of this country in life. Anatoly Afanasyevich recalls that China “burst into his life” at the end of 2004, “when I was appointed co-chairman of the Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation. But it first appeared in the 1960s, when I was studying at the history department. Then the Soviet-Chinese relations were uneasy, i.e. the events on Damansky (island. - Auth.), 1969, we were greatly concerned about it. Fortunately, my teachers formed a very correct attitude towards this people, their cul-

Anatoly Tozik

ture. I don’t know why, but all my life I had the idea that I should work in China, that I would be there. At first it seemed to be a dream, but, probably, when you really want something...” Anatoly Tozik was unable to part with China after his return to Belarus: he was in charge of bilateral cooperation in the rank of Deputy Prime Minister. It is admitted that when he left the civil service in December 2014, he planned to “start paying off his debts to the family, a lot of things had accumulated over the decades” and “felt very well” as a professor at the Department of Diplomatic and Consular Service. But then the Headquarters of Confucius Institutes in Beijing and his native BSU made an offer, which he could not refuse: to head Confu-

cius Institute in Minsk. In September 2019, the institute became a model one. — When it was announced that we had been awarded this title, the Deputy Director General of the Headquarters of Confucius Institutes said that at the moment the Republican Confucius Institute of Sinology at BSU was perhaps the best among all such institutions, and there are more than five hundred of them in the world now. This is a recognition of our level, quality of education and work. Anatoly Tozik is happy to speak about what has already been achieved, but even more enthusiastic about what should be done. One of the new directions of work initiated by the institute is training of Chinese

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

DIALOGUE OF CULTURES

ZVIAZDA.BY

language school teachers. Anatoly Tozik is sure that there is a devastating lack of Chinese teachers in our country: “Unfortunately, the situation is such that less than one percent of pupils study this language at school. This is a very serious problem, and the lag in this area is starting to restrain the entire range of bilateral cooperation.” Sinologists are trained at the Faculty of Philology of the Belarusian State University and at Minsk Linguistic University, only about twenty people annually are financed from the budget. Since the training is good, “the Chinese and Belarusian-Chinese organizations working in our country, and there are about seventy of them in China-Belarus industrial park, are delighted to employ these graduates. Chinese is taught only in 30 schools. When I worked as the Deputy Prime Minister and suggested paying attention to this, the Ministry of Education answered that “there are no applicants.” And when I came here, almost every month we received calls from schools, even from the rural ones: “Help us to find a teacher.” That is, the situation has changed, people are beginning to understand that today knowledge of the Chinese language is an additional guarantee that a person will find an interesting job with a good salary. Therefore, today demand starts to outrun supply.” And here, in RCIS, we figured out how to meet it: to train Chinese teachers from among those who already work at school

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

and teach other foreign languages. The experiment, i.e. two years of budget-financed study, began in 2018, and the first graduation took place last year. The Ministry of Education finances this training. — Are your students from all over the country? — Yes, we try to admit them from every region. Classes are conducted by the most qualified Belarusian teachers of the Chinese language. And the Chinese side sent several teachers with academic degrees and titles specially for this project. We have set up a chair of the Chinese language; I think that today it is the best in the republic. The format of training: two months of deep immersion in the subject at the institute, ten academic hours daily, and two months on-line, new knowledge every day. In the morning there is a task, in the evening there is feedback. — At an intensive rate! — In 2018, we took on a small group of 16 people. Thirteen have succeeded, a good figure (smiles). Two people left due to illness, and we expelled one for missing classes without a good reason. He was expelled in the first week, and for two years I felt calm. Now the second and third admissions of students are being trained, 60 people. They are so bustling, very interested. I teach them a course on cross-cultural studies; I really like the audience. They, unlike students, have a different motivation. Students are not sure whether they need it or not, because

Oriental studies is a narrow specialty. But adults understand that they need it. With such students, I, as a teacher, experience maximum professional satisfaction, I understand my relevance. Therefore, I decided to teach a course on Chinese history as well: I do not want to part with them. — The idea of motivation is very inter‑ esting... — They understand that one language is one leg, and another language, on top of that Chinese, is the other, and they will firmly stand on the ground. I think this is very important for teachers of languages such as Spanish, French, German. The desire of children to learn these languages is diminishing, so teachers find themselves in a difficult situation. One of our graduates, having received her diploma, said: “Thank you very much. I used to teach German at school, but parents don’t want their children to learn it. And I was thinking of working in a kindergarten as a teacher, but now I have been invited to work in a gymnasium.” One of our graduates was invited to teach at Polesie State University, another one — at the Republican Institute for Knowledge Control. Everyone — this was my principled stand — had to pass the HSK international qualification exam, with 4-5 level. With level 4, one can be accepted to many Chinese universities, and with level 5, one can enter any Chinese university without prior specific training. So, this project is successful. Besides, our graduates confirm: the level of training that we give is not lower than at the philological department of the

DIALOGUE OF CULTURES the pandemic, everything has slowed down. This worries me very much, because the pandemic will end, and our relations with China are strategic, and I want us not to roll back in the volume, dynamics and structure of these relations during this time.” We walk about the institute building — wide corridors, cozy classrooms equipped with the latest technology, and Anatoly Afanasyevich does not hide his pride: here one can hold international conferences of

citizens with Belarus — with the Belarusian language, culture, with the country in general. A textbook of the Belarusian language for Chinese students made at the Institute is about to be published by the publishing center of the Belarusian State University. Today in China — and this information, I am sure, will surprise many - there are centers for the study of Belarus, the Belarusian language and culture in 14 universities. The Belarusian language is studied in Beijing, BELTA

Belarusian State University or at the Minsk State Linguistic University. Our institute will continue the work in this direction. — Has the coronavirus pandemic forced the institute to seek new forms of education? — We decided to try distance teaching — so that people can learn the language without getting a diploma. Chinese teachers were more prepared for distance learning. Our teachers followed them, we have a very friendly team. After all, we can give people who know Russian the opportunity to study Chinese wherever they are, even in Australia. — That is, you go big… — We go big, really (smiles). Another direction that we have been engaged in for a long time is the study of China, primarily the experience of the policy of reforms and openness, in view of the possibility of implementation of this experience in our country. It is very important for us now to form the National School of Sinology. China today is rapidly moving towards the status of number one country on the planet, and a lot will depend on it in the future. Perhaps it will play a decisive role in whether humanity will emerge from a deep systemic crisis or not. But for us its economic, technological and investment potential is important. But this country should be known, and be known not at the level of expression of friendship, it should be studied and studied deeply. This is a different civilization, a system of values, if you will, a different system of interpersonal, corporate communication. It is necessary to know the state of individual industries, their capabilities, the level of technology, so that one can actively use all this in the interests of own country — of course, on the principle of mutual benefit, mutual interest. I think the latter is a big strategic challenge. There is no such school in the country yet. Another new direction of the Institute’s work is information and analytical support of practical bilateral cooperation. Tuesday was announced as a consultation day, consultations are provided free of charge, the main goal, according to Anatoly Tozik, is “to see what people want and what we can do. There is interest, but very little so far. Either people do not know about us, or because of

Grand opening of the new RCIS building. Pictured: Anatoly Tozik and Zhao Guocheng, Deputy Head of the Headquarters of Confucius Institutes.

the highest level: there are special booths for simultaneous translation, screens for video communication with the whole world. There is also a bookstore specializing in publications about China of the international publishing house “Chance”: a large selection of textbooks for learners of the Chinese language and many books on the tradition and culture of the large country. The store is open for everyone, not only for those who study at the institute. — In fact, at our request, Oriental Culture Publishing House was founded in Belarus. I try to attract everything related to China. We invited students of the Department of Philology, majoring in Chinese, so that they could feel the vibes. There is one more direction that I consider very important. This is the promotion of Belarus in China. It is my deep conviction that the task of Confucius institutes and, above all, our institute is not only to acquaint Belarusian citizens with China, but also to acquaint Chinese

Shanghai, Tianjin, Xian and other cities. Moreover - “I’m going to use such high-flown style now,” Anatoly Afanasyevich smiles: — A large educational Chinese-Belarusian and Belarusian-Chinese dictionary, prepared by our institute in cooperation with the Institute of Linguistics of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, is coming out soon. In our bilateral cooperation, this is actually a big event. I think it is very important. We are a sovereign state, yes, we have two official languages, but Belarusian is the first in the Constitution, this is the language of the titular nation. But until now we haven’t had such a dictionary. When I, amazed by the variety of directions of work, bid farewell to Anatoly Tozik, he said: “I work to the benefit of my country and to the benefit of China too, but only in those directions, problems, topics that correspond to the interests of both countries.” Inessa Pleskachevskaya

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

LITERARY BRIDGES

MAI VAN PHAN:

“IT’S HARD TO FIND A MODERN WRITER, WHO IS LIKED BY EVERYONE…”

Now he lives and works in the city of Hai Phong (Vietnam). He is the author of 16 poetry books published in his native language. Many of Mai Van Phan’s works have been translated into world languages — English, French, Russian, Belarusian, Ukrainian, Spanish, German, Swedish, Dutch, Albanian, Chinese, Bengali and others. A book of poems by the Vietnamese poet translated into Belarusian is being prepared for publication in Minsk. — What causes concern of contemporary Vietnamese writers? — Thank you for the question. Now our country is striving to keep pace with the others, is aimed at world integration. Yes, we still suffer from the consequences of the past incessant violent wars, and as small-area countries Vietnam is strongly influenced by the multipolar world, globalization — both positively and negatively. At the moment, there are many Chinese warships, probes and drilling rigs in the East (South China) Sea. They venture into territorial waters and exclusive economic zones of Vietnam. History shows that the fate of the nation directly affects the fate of an individual Vietnamese citizen. In the same way, the inner world of each person is the basic unit that crystallizes the value and spiritual strength of our people. This is what modern Vietnamese writers write about, depicting all aspects of life, from superficial to deeply disturbing topics. So, all of this is the subject of writing in Vietnam. — What underlies the modern Vietnamese litera‑ ture: prose, poetry or nonfiction? — All the above mentioned literary forms. However, prose has

always been the main part, the engine, in a huge literary “machine”. Thanks to the peculiarities of the genre, as is known, prose allows the writer to expand the range of space and time, to highlight history and modernity most vividly, and also to predict what will happen in the future. — What are the print runs of prose and poetry books? How much do they differ from the ones that were published at the end of the 20th century? — I cannot say for sure how many prose or poetry books are published each year. According to statistics from the Vietnam Authority of Publication, Printing and Distribution, about 32,000 book titles were published in 2018 with a print run of over 390 million copies. This is 20.6% more in terms of the number of books, and 24.7% more in terms of print run compared to 2017 data. Growth is noticeable. Thus, each year the number of books increases compared to the previous year, and, of course, significantly exceeds the print runs of editions published at the end of the 20th century. In such big cities as Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh, whole “book quarters” and “book streets” have

BOOSTARKING.RU

Vietnamese poet Mai Van Phan was born in 1955 in Kim Son (Ninh Binh Province). This is in the Red River Delta, North Vietnam. For seven years he served in the army, in the infantry. Then he entered the College of Foreign Languages, the Faculty of Linguistics and Russian Culture. In 1983 he came to Minsk. He studied at the Pedagogical Institute.

Ninh Binh Province, Vietnam

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

LITERARY BRIDGES appeared. Since 2014, the Prime Minister of Vietnam has proclaimed April 21 of each year as “Book Day in Vietnam”. — Frankly speaking, this is impressive, because in all countries there is a concern about a drop in print runs. Is there a problem of children’s reading in Vietnam? Have the children completely gone online? — We, the Vietnamese, have a strong tradition — to love books. Since ancient times, on the occasion of New Year’s holidays, birthdays or the beginning of a new school year, adults have given books and pens to young children with the wishes to be obedient, study hard and gain a lot of knowledge. Our children often read books on the Internet. But what worries me is that they are often drawn into comics with a minimum text, especially Japanese comics. Besides, I am concerned that due to computerization, our offsprings suffer from early myopia. — How rapidly is children’s literature developing? — Our writers probably write more slowly than the expectations and needs of children require… In particular, the writer Nguyen Nhat Anh has written over 50 books for young readers. His books have been translated into several Asian languages such as Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Thai and others. Our publishers try to have children’s literature translated from all the continents in quick time. Nevertheless, every family realizes the need to create a special, purely Vietnamese niche — with historical books, fairy tales, legends, folk songs, proverbs… This is necessary for the education of the younger generation in respect for the nation, love for the motherland and country. — Are translated books popular with readers? — Yes, foreign literature is in great demand among our readers. Perhaps there is not a single significant work in the world that has not been translated into Vietnamese. In addition to state publishing houses, there are also private book publishing companies. They are considered to be dynamic and sensitive to market demand. Besides, there are many intellectuals in Vietnam who read books in the original, e. g. in English, Russian and French. — How strong are the ties of Vietnamese literature with the literatures of China, Japan, India? — The ties between Vietnamese literature and the literature of the countries you have mentioned is similar to the ties between Russian literature and Belarusian or European and American literature. Our publishers, booksellers and translators have always been active and professional. Perhaps they have “covered” the whole world in the selection of books for Vietnamese readers. — Do people in Vietnam know Vasil Bykov, Svetlana Alexiev‑ ich and other Belarusian writers? — As early as in the eighties of the last century, two books by Vladimir Korotkevich — “Chazenia” and “The Wild Hunt of King Stakh” were translated and published in Vietnam. Vasil Bykov’s works have also been translated and published in Vietnam. In recent years, many books by the 2015 Nobel laureate in literature, Svetlana Alexievich, have been published in Vietnam. All of them were warmly received by our readers. For example, “Chernobyl Prayer: A Chronicle of the Future”, “Last Witnesses”. Her book “The

War Has No Woman’s Face” was translated for the second time from the original without distortions and was reprinted many times. — Does the system of state support of book publishing still ex‑ ist in Vietnam? — The state system of book publishing support is functioning well. Publishers and booksellers often sponsor the publication of books. The Vietnamese Writers’ Association and regional writers’ associations often provide support to authors — for example, by covering travel and accommodation expenses for writers on various creative assignments. — Is there a system of literary awards? — Yes, there are many literary awards at different levels. There is, for example, President Ho Chi Minh Award. The Vietnamese Writers’ Association and the regional writers’ associations also hold annual awards. There are scholarships granted by the Ministry and departments, provinces and cities throughout the year or once every 3 to 5 years. Besides, various literary competitions are often held by newspapers and literary magazines. — What is the most popular work of contemporary Vietnam‑ ese literature today? — Preferences largely depend on the genre, and each generation of readers chooses their favorite works for themselves. Young people often read books very different from those that were read by the previous generation. If we conduct a sociological survey, it will be difficult to find a modern writer who is loved by everyone. I think this is a good sign of a democratic and liberal literary life. And also, in my opinion, the works of writers who tend to be innovative, absorb the ultimate expression of poetry in the world, and at the same time skillfully combine them with the Vietnamese national identity, will be enthusiastically appreciated by young people. Interviewed by Kirill Ladutko

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

SPORT

WHAT IS THE IMPORT OF THE PHENOMENON?

There are no mountains, but there is sport

Our mountain skiing started in the village of Zelenoe, where in 1955 enthusiastic amateurs Viktor Podshibyakin, Anatoly Altukhov and Yury Perminov organized the first competitions. One of the three founding fathers of Alpine Skiing, Yuri Perminov, became a pioneer of the famous track in the village of Raubichi. Viktor Podshibyakin was a coach of the first national team. In the 1960s, mountain skiing started to gain momentum — athletes began to show their first good results at international competitions, referee teams were formed, and infrastructure improved.

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Continues its existence and development In 1998, Belarusian skiers competed for the first time at the Olympic Games in Nagano, Japan, Igor Yudin came 36th in Super-G. At the end of his sports career, he became the first chairperson of the Belarusian Federation of Alpine Skiing and Snowboarding and surprised many by proving that skiers can train on the Belarusian terrain. And as practice has shown, he was right. In 2010, at the Olympic Games in Vancouver, Canada, Belarus was represented by Maria Shkanova and Lizaveta Kuzmenka. Yuri Danilochkin was selected for the Olympics in Sochi together with Maria Shkanova. The Belarusian duo also represented the country at the 2018 Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea. After 66 years, alpine skiing in Belarus continues its existence and development, thanks to the enthusiasm of athletes, coaches and management. To skeptics, this may seem illogical — in the country where the highest point is 345‑meter-high Mount

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

Dzerzhinskaya, Alpine skiing can hardly develop. However, the absence of mountains is not a hindrance. Aleksandr Nakonechny, the head of the team, senior coach of the national team of the Republic of Belarus for alpine skiing and snowboarding, told us about alpine skiing and whether it is really based on the enthusiasm of all those involved. “Many people think that alpine skiing can be well developed only in mountainous places. In Belarus conditions for developing alpine skiing and snowboarding, becoming them popular with the population have been created. We have centers with the necessary infrastructure, e. g. the ski center “Solnechnaya Dolina” in Minsk, centers in Raubichi, Silichi, Logoisk, Vitebsk, Mogilev, Mozyr, Grodno. These conditions are sufficient for the initial stage of training of athletes under 12 years old. Further on, athletes continue their training in mountainous countries on steeper and longer slopes. Professional athletes need more distinct elevation changes and longer trails with different underlying surface options, e. g. water-flooded ice trails, than are available at our

SPORT SILICHY.BY

feeling of skiing. And if a person is ready both psychologically and physically, injuries are minimized,” — says Aleksandr Nakonechny. The best skiers use this simulator while training for the competitions. And for Belarus, not very rich in snow, it is useful at all training stages. Although it is clear that no simulator can completely replace mountains.

Alpine skiing prima

facilities. This issue can be resolved if there are additional resources,” — notes Aleksandr Nakonechny. One can learn the basics of skiing in many places on the flat terrain of Belarus. There are sports schools for children and young people which include skiing and snowboarding training in the capital and Minsk region, Mogilev. About 200 children throughout the country study at specialized educational and sports institutions. Unfortunately, only a few manage to come up to professional athletes. There are six disciplines in alpine skiing. Only technical ones are being developed in Belarus: slalom, parallel and giant slalom. Slalom means skiing downslope a 450–500 m long piste marked with gates. The athlete must ski through all the gates. The giant slalom is based on the same rules but differs in the requirements for the piste. For slalom, the difference in elevation between the start and the finish should be 60–150 meters, in giant slalom — from 300 meters. It is impossible to develop speed disciplines, for example downhill skiing, in Belarus. There are no slopes in the country with the required length and elevation difference. Such disciplines are popular in the Alpine countries, where there are natural conditions for it. It is difficult and expensive to create them artificially.

Simulator is a friend of the Belarusian skier Belarusian skiers are preparing for competitions abroad. And they can get fit at home. In Raubichi or in the ski center “Solnechnaya Dolina”, all the necessary conditions for general and special full-fledged training, e. g. rollerblading, practicing jumps. Special ІMOOVE simulator installed in “Solnechnaya Dolina” develops and improves many special qualities of an athlete. “The simulator completely copies the biomechanics and physics of skiing. By using it one can test own strength, prepare muscles for stress, because everything starts with them. Working on it, one can develop physical condition well. The skills gained on it are easily applied on the piste. With the help of the simulator, an athlete psychologically adjusts to the

Belarusian alpine skiing has a woman’s face, the face of Maria Shkanova. She is the leader and bright phenomenon in this sport. Maria is the only member of the national team and the focus is on her. “Training of world-class athletes requires significant financial resources, i. e. training camps, competitions, equipment. Therefore, it is advisable to focus on the athlete who has repeatedly confirmed his/her sports mastery and can achieve high results,” — explains Aleksandr Nakonechny. Since 2008, a native of Russian Magnitogorsk, has been competing for Belarus. For 12 years, she took part in three Olympic Games, won a full set of awards at the World University Games 2017, and showed high results in many international competitions. Now Maria competes at the World Cup stages and trains for the World Championship, scheduled for February. At the planetary championship, Maria will compete in three disciplines, i. e. her favorite slalom, giant slalom and parallel giant slalom. The beginning of New Year was successful for Maria, in early January at the European Cup stage she won the 9th place, which is the best personal result at the European Cup stages. “Of course, I want competition in our team, this is the only way to improve our results. When I do skiing, I always train abroad with other teams, so I always have enough competition. Now in Belarus there are promising children, who in the future, with the right training, can become good skiers. At the preliminary stage of the European Cup, I showed a really good result. But, like any athlete, I want more. Now I am regularly training for the World Championship, there are still several stages of the European Cup ahead. Some things still should be improved. Now I

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

SPORT ZVIAZDA.BY

have a lot of coming-offs, I do not reach the end of the piste and make mistakes. The coach and I believe this is due to the fact that during the preparatory period in the coronavirus pandemic, I did not ski much, and started special training later. We are actively working on this, and by the World Cup all the mistakes will be corrected. All my objectives for 2021 are related to sports. After the World Cup, I will start training for the 2022 Olympic Games in Beijing. I already have a license, the minimum plan has been fulfilled, and I am thinking of the maximum plan — not just taking part in the Olympics, but showing a good result there,” — said Maria Shkanova.

One can conquer alone on the ski-jump

BELTA

Along with skiing, snowboarding is also developing. There are two popular disciplines in the country: slopestyle and big air. Both involve acrobatic stunts while ski-juming. The difference is that in slopestyle, jumps are made on skijumps, counter-slopes, handrails, sequentially located along the course. Both disciplines are Olympic. So far, the only Belarusian athlete who can be qualified for the Olympics is Pavel Onischenko. In 2017, he won the first European-level men’s medal for Belarus, i. e. bronze at the European Cup stage. Now the main goal of the athlete is to win a license for the 2022 Olympic Games in Beijing. According to Aleksander Nakonechny, the task is challenging, but realistic. “Pavel Onishchenko is our brightest snowboarder, he is also a member of the national team. The others are still training to

Maria Shkanova

reach his level. In our country we have conditions for the athletes’ development. We have global ideas for equipping the Republican Center for Olympic Training in Winter Sports “Raubichi” with an inclined air cushion. The world practice of snowboard development shows that it allows to increase the complexity of jumps and better prepare for competitions. Besides, such a cushion will save money on trainings at similar foreign camps. Thus, we are planning to create our own base for the development of snowboarding, which will attract more people to this sport. Snowboarding is a complex coordinated sport, besides, it is subjective. Snowboarding is not just a sport, it’s a way of life. Successful athletes live on a slope, constantly ski, make acrobatic stunts, jump from every surface they find. To popularize their sport, they initiate the creation of parks, do wakeboarding in summer,” — says Aleksandr Nakonechny.

Live and learn In modern sports, no one is surprised by the invitation of international players. This is nothing new for alpine skiing either. Yuri Danilochkin, who in 2010 changed his Russian sports citizenship to Belarusian, took part in the Olympic Games in Sochi and Pyeongchang together with Maria Shkanova. According to the senior coach of the national team, the approach has changed over 11 years: “Now we are trying to minimize the practice of inviting foreign players. If we invite an athlete, we need to understand that work, finances have already been invested in him/her, and certain skills have been developed. So why can’t we do the same? Now we are looking for talented children in the regions to raise good athletes from them in future. Yes, we need resources for this, but the Ministry of Sports and Tourism helps us, we attract sponsors. In sports, nothing happens in the snap of a finger, one has to work a lot.” Cooperation with foreign colleagues in the Belarusian Federation of Alpine Skiing and Snowboarding is intellectual. Aleksandr Nakonechny is sure that nothing is going to work out without exchange of experience: “Slovenian school of alpine skiing is one of the best. They have highly qualified specialists, the latest information. They constantly conduct research and are not afraid of innovations. There is a lot to learn from colleagues from Austria, USA, Switzerland, Norway, Sweden — they are world leaders. We try to take everything useful and suitable for us from each school, so that Belarusian athletes can learn and apply the best techniques and improve the quality of their performances. Athletes, coaches, and the federation have a lot of work, but climbing up is never easy.” Valeriya Stsetsko

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

IMPRESSIONS

ICE, STOP MELTING!

An exhibition of ice and snow figures was held in the Central Botanical Garden of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus There is a place in Minsk never before imprinted by a human foot — this is the impression our Central Botanical Garden creates. And even though it is almost a hundred years old (the official date of its foundation is April 17, 1932), and every city dweller knows where it is, anyway, when you get there, it seems that you are in pristine wilderness. And this, in my opinion, is a wonderful example of how a person can harmoniously influence the living environment without destroying, but creating and even improving it. With such thoughts, I was wandering along the snow-covered pathways of the Botanical Garden in search of an alley with ice figures. In early February, the VI Festival-competition called “The World of Crystals” was held there. The work on making ice sculptures lasted for a week. In general, their creation is not the work of one person. Eight professional and ten student teams of sculptors fiddled with the ice blocks. Chisels, knives, cutters, straight grinders and “combs” were used as a “magic wand”. And the ice itself — river or artificial, weighing half a ton — was brought in special vehicles in the form of huge blocks. Each — 120 kg! A week of work at 15 degrees below zero and — voila! — hippos, elephants, wolves and bears look at visitors from the right and

left along the walking path. There is even a birder, and next to him there is a sculpture of a free bird, which was released to the sky by someone’s caring hands. A huge two-meter-high snow iron stands here and does not melt. Futuristic sculptural compositions are interesting in their own way: you walk around them several times and think: what did the author mean? It’s amazing how all this can be made of ice!.. The one that hangs in the form of icicles from the roofs of houses, and may be dangerous for those who skate on a frozen

river… I learned that there are many fine points in work with ice: first, it should be a little melted so that it doesn’t crack and break during processing (a hairdryer copes with this task well). If something goes wrong, one should be really quick to jump out of the way otherwise, one can get hurt badly. By the way, each figure is fenced with a caution tape “Hazard area”. I wonder, how “ice axes” manage to create such masterpieces from a shapeless block of ice. It turns out, that at first a sketch is made on whatman paper. Then it is put on the ice block and the contour are cut with a chainsaw. Small details are drawn with black marker on the sculpture itself. It’s hard to believe, but many things can be created of such a material as ice. In

the hands of a master, it can bend, take any shape — just like plasticine. Entire landscapes and palace complexes, all kinds of labyrinths, any fairy-tale characters, and even perfect copies of animals and people can be created from ice and snow. At the end of the alley, I noticed a figure named “Sledge”. By the way, it won the first place in the competition. I found this information on the Botanical Garden website. I came up and took a closer look at it: where is the sledge? Most likely, the sculpture had melted, because after the end of the competition, the cold snap was over. The outline of the sledge, apparently, started melting, and turned into a small hill. Although, I found out that such massive icy pieces melt slowly and at a steady pace. Even at +25°C, the sculpture will “disappear” only after four hours. And at room temperature it will preserve the perfect condition for 7–12 hours. It is interesting that ice sculptures are popular all over the world, although they first came in vogue in Russia, at the beginning of the 18th century during the reign of the Russian Empress Anna Ioannovna. Once she ordered the construction of an ice house 17x5x6 meters on the Neva in honor of the buffoonish wedding of Prince Golitsyn. The craftsmen carried out the order: they made ice cannons, and placed dolphins at the gates. Inside the ice structure there was furniture, a fireplace, and even a bathhouse. Everything was made from frozen water. Alisa Gungor. Photo by autor.

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

LITERATURE FOR CHILDREN

ON A JOURNEY — WITH FAVORITE CHARACTERS — We have been working with booksellers and libraries for many years. Therefore, we know that even today, in the era of fast-paced life, clip way of thinking and fast reading on the Internet, a book remains a person’s best friend,” noted Yulia Dashkevich, Deputy Director of Zviazda Publishing House. — Researchers have found out that immersion into another, described by the author reality is possible only when reading printed texts — when we leaf through a paper book, and not its electronic version. According to the survey, it is precisely such an immersion that many associate with the word “happiness” in our frantic times. This means that a good book can make a person happy. And therefore, has a lot of friends and fans. One can see it for themselves thanks to promotions, meetings with writers and, of course, books that get to readers as a result of cooperation between the publisher and the authors. So, for example, last year on October 1, the campaign “Zviazda meets with friends” was launched. It aims at contributing to the development of Belarusian fiction, reviving reading traditions, and it also makes children acquainted with classical and modern children’s literature. There is close cooperation with the country’s libraries. In connection with winter holidays, Zviazda Publishing House, together with Belkniga and Akademkniga, began to implement the project “In the New Year with Zviazda”, which started on December 1, 2020 and will last until March 1, 2021. As part of the project “Cultural Route: Modern Writers for Children”, Zviazda Publishing House will hold meetings with writers and presentations in schools,

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

gymnasiums, libraries and kindergartens. One can get acquainted with publications for both children and adults on its website or on social networks. — It is very pleasant that our creative year begins with the theme of children’s literature and that on the eve of the book fair we are talking about it. The Union of Writers is now actively preparing for participation in our famous book forum. Children’s literature will be widely presented there. Because we understand: the future of the book is primarily determined by young readers, — said the first deputy of the Union of Writers of Belarus, writer Elena Stelmakh. — The topic of reading is acute today all over the world. And many countries start wondering what future society will be like, whether it will be educated, literate, and the groundwork for it is laid at a very early age, including the kind of books which are read to children. The writer also shared with the attendees the events in her creative life. So, Zviazda Publishing House is preparing her new book “Soup pot Mila” for publication, from which readers can learn about pottery and special tradition of arranging family dinner. By the way, they also spoke about the fact that reading unites and today children come to libraries with their parents. And the popular children’s writer Ekaterina KhodasevichLisovaya expressed the following thoughts on how to be closer to the reader today: — I think that the best option is when the book is written not only for a child. If, while reading it to their children, adults discover some interesting things for themselves. And of course, fairy tales for children must be full of kindness. Children should

MININFORM.GOV.BY.RU

How to make reading fashionable again, what to write books for modern children about and what events allow not to lose direct contact with readers — representatives of Zviazda Publishing House, the authors who are published by it, and librarians spoke about this and many other things on the eve of the XXVIII Minsk International Book Fair.

Writer Ekaterina Khodasevich-Lisovaya

be brought up on eternal values, i. e. mercy, friendship, respect, and mutual understanding. Because a child is like a blank sheet of paper. The traits that are moulded in infancy will remain forever, will determine his/ her future. A children’s book should teach the best, and writers should create a fabulous and comfortable world for their young readers. It is necessary to build works on the basic postulates — these are moral values and spiritual guidelines. Other than that, the works can be filled with any details to make them modern and interesting. A new book by Ekaterina KhodasevichLisovaya, which is called “The Riddle of the Princess Agnes”, is now waiting in the wings. Its presentation is going to take place at Minsk Book Fair. And those books that have already been published by Zviazda Publishing House can be purchased if one wants to continue travelling with their favorite characters. Alena Drapko

FAIRY TALE

PIK-PIK AND PEPITA

In an ordinary city apartment, in the room of little Veronichka and Maksimka, a fat, lazy mouse lives under the wardrobe. The owners of this apartment, Mama and Papa of Veronichka and Maksimka, are poets. This is probably why mouse Pik-Pik is not quite an ordinary mouse, just like her friend, cat Pepita. Once cat Pepita read a story about cats and mice having a fight, and since then cats have been hunting mice. Pepita thought: “But I, however, have never hunted mice.” And Pepita decided to live according to ancestral traditions. Moreover, there is a mouse nearby — Pik-Pik. Pepita read the fairy tale again, remembered the cartoons about Tom and Jerry… It seems that the hunt should be done this way: a cat sits by the mouse’s hole and waits for the victim to appear. Perfect! Pepita took a brush, combed her tail and whiskers and went to Veronichka’s room, where, as you know, there was PikPik’s hole under the wardrobe. Pepita sat down by the wardrobe and began to wait. She waited and waited, got bored… She brought a folding-armchair to make it more comfortable, sat down again and waited… Boring. She fetched a magazine for fun and a piece of sausage. She sat down in the armchair, opened the magazine, took a bite of sausage… It was not difficult at all to hunt like that. Veronichka went into the room and asked: — What are you doing here, Pepita? — I’m hunting Pik-Pik the mouse, — answered Pepita proudly. Veronichka was surprised, but did not interfere and left. Meanwhile, the mouse Peak-Peak heard this conversation and was very interested: how is Pepita hunting her? She leaned out of the hole (Pepita did not notice this while reading the magazine) and saw: the cat sat in an armchair, eating sausage and reading. — Oh, hunting is a very good thing! — the mouse rejoiced at seeing it — I also want to hunt! The mouse pulled a little armchair out of the hole, which she had taken from Veronichka’s dolls, grabbed a piece of newspaper and a gingerbread. She sat down opposite Pepita and began eating and reading… Wonderful! Pepita raised her eyes from the magazine and got surprised: — And what are you doing, Pik-Pik? And Pik-Pik answered her with her mouth full: — What am I doing? Munch! crunch!.. I’m also hunting… Munch! crunch!.. Pepita got confused:

— Who are you hunting?! — Who? Munch! crunch!.. You… Munch! crunch!.. The cat was surprised. There was nothing about such a case in the fairy tale… But after thinking for a while, Pepita came to terms with it: it is so pleasant to hunt… And the mouse and the cat went on sitting opposite each other, eating and reading… Dad came into the room. — What are you doing? — We’re hunting! — Pik-Pik and Pepita answered in unison. — Who are you huting? — I’m hunting her, she’s hunting me! Dad was so surprised that could not find anything to say and left, shaking his head. Meanwhile, the gingerbread and the sausage were eaten up, the newspaper and the magazine were read over. They got bored to be sitting. — Well, shall we break up? — Pik-Pik asked her colleague. — Perhaps… — Pepita yawned. — It was a good hunt… — Tomorrow we’ll hunt again! — the mouse responded and disappeared into the hole. And Pepita set the armchair in its place, feeling that she had fulfilled her feline duty. Lyudmila Rublevskaya

STIHI.RU

ON A HUNT

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

25 YEARS LATER

HIKING IN FANTASY STYLE

Notes on a trip around Belarus, which no one made on foot

don’t know what we would do today, if in our minds or at the level of intuition a stubborn, even a stunning idea appeared once again to travel on foot along the Belarusian State Border, which we carried into life in 1996. Of course, today our 120‑day route with a length of 2810 kilometers can be divided into dozens of separate settlemets, road sections and, after making a trip, after seeing something, our new impressions can be described. But, however, that unique perception, past feelings that we experienced almost a quarter of a century ago cannot be brought back and reflected in the diaries of a new journey. And it’s hardly worth it. As we know, you cannot step the same river twice. Especially if it’s a river of time. R e c a l l i ng ou r, to s om e e x te nt adventurous project from time to time, we often say at morning coffee on a day off: yes, it would be interesting to visit the people we met in those years. And it would

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

be interesting to look at the changes that happened in the cities, villages and towns we visited. Undoubtedly: a quarter of a century is a period for our country. And we are also well aware: independent Belarus has really transformed over these years. And then, in the spring and summer of 1996, there was still enough post-Soviet confusion in the rural areas. But the sprouts of a new life made their way imperiously, rooting into the soil of independence. In that distant 1996, we essentially passed not only along the entire perimeter of Belarus, but as if along the edge of an era. From the height of the past years, it is well understood. Yes, our country has changed a lot. We have also changed in some way, have become more mature. Figuratively speaking, we set foot on the path of wisdom leading to the path of awareness. And we continue walking, joyfully discovering new opportunities in ourselves. Is this path always easy? Alas… As we know, the immersion in the inner worlds of us, people, the realization of who

we are in this life, is associated with certain psychosomatic difficulties. After all, we shouldn’t forget about our ego. As well as facts it can be pretty stubborn. Sometimes unbearable for oneself. From time to time, we see it for ourselves, as we did more than once on the route. Therefore, we will try to tell the reader not only about “what”, but also about “how”, i. e. not only about roadside people and the beauty of Belarus’ nature, but also about what happened in our souls immersed in the new Belarusian realities. Four thick writing books remind us that the “Travelling to the Kingdom of Far Far Away” took place. They are filled with our almost daily impressions and self-reflection, which will serve as the basis for our notes. They say: if you are bored with the familiar gray world, surrounding you, fantasy is just what you need. There is also a popular belief that fantasy is a disease. Of course, people might think so of us, on seeing our business card in the form of a kite. And reproach us for being remote from real life. And even twist a finger at

25 YEARS LATER

It would have been impossible to break away from the harsh reality with daily strenuous hiking of 20–25 km or even more, if not for the element of a game. And in order not to turn into a drudge doing hard work, a symbol of our journey, as a reminder of the miracle and magic of life itself, we chose a kite as a symbol of our journey, freedom, flight, beauty, a connection between earth and sky. We named the journey “Travelling to the Kingdom of Far Far Away”. Perhaps, if we hadn’t added elements of a game into our project, we would have hardly implemented it. a temple. Mildly speaking: freaks. We admit: it would have been impossible to break away from the harsh reality with daily strenuous hiking of 20–25 km or even more, if not for the element of a game. And in order not to turn into a drudge doing hard work, a symbol of our journey, as a reminder of the miracle and magic of life itself, we chose a kite as a symbol of our journey, freedom, flight, beauty, a connection between earth and sky. We named the journey “Travelling to the Kingdom of Far Far Away”. Perhaps, if we hadn’t added elements of a game into our project, we would have hardly implemented it. And as for the inexplicable moments, mysticism in our hiking, they also took place. But more on that later.

“To the representative office of the Book of Records of Russia, Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and Baltic countries “DIVO” in Minsk. We presented materials about a 120‑day non-stop circular hiking tour along the State Border of Belarus. According to our data, no one in the world has walked around their country on foot either before or until now. We made the journey “Travelling to the Kingdom of Far Far Away” in the springsummer of 1996. It began in the village of Druya (Braslav district, Vitebsk region) on April 15 and ended there 120 days later — on August 12. We arrived at the starting point from Minsk by train, with a stop in Polotsk (copies of tickets are attached). The journey itself was only on foot. There were also river crossings where the water blocked the passage along the state border: the Dneper (Loev — by boat), the Pripyat (Barbarov — by boat) and twice the Dvina (Sebezh, Russia — by ferry; Baliny, Bigosovo area — by boat). There were also, as tourists-hikers say, radial trips (without hiking things) on a cart to the house of a local old healer (Kamenka village, Oshmyany district, 28.04.1996) and by car to the grave of the writer Tsetka (v. Stary Dvor, Schuchin district, 4.05.1996). We walked an average of 20–25 km a day. In cold weather, at the beginning of the trip, we stayed overnight in village schools and at local residents, then in a tent, and never in a hotel. In 120 days, the distance of 2810 kilometers was covered — the figure was recorded by a speedometer mounted on a small carriage, in which we carried things necessary

for a camping life. Moreover, every day, usually in the morning, we wrote down the readings of the speedometer in our travel diaries. We also wrote down impressions, reflections, poems, interesting conversations with people — 3 writing books, about 500 pages of texts. There are also records about places, settlements through which we passed, seals of local councils, schools, pharmacies, shops, post offices and other organizations, which we, if possible, collected during the entire trip. There are signatures of some people. To promote the project even before setting foot on the route, a special logo was developed (attached). On the eve of the trip (April 10, 1996), a large article was published in the republican “Nastaunitskaya Hazeta” which outlined the idea of the journey and the route. Appropriate permits were obtained for travelling in the border regions (copies are attached). The project was financed by personal savings of its two participants. Already during the trip, it was widely covered in the mass media of Belarus: in district, regional, republican newspapers, in the “Radiofact” program of the Belarusian radio, in the news releases of the Belarusian television and the local Pinsk television studio “Varyag”. BelTA’s photo information with a note that travelers would pass Gomel was published in many print media of the country.

Are we “lost” for the Guinness Book of Records? What was our journey like? It is hard to tell about this briefly… And yet… Let us outline the essence. A couple of years ago, inspired by the advice of fellow journalists to somehow formalize our hiking achievement, we briefly put 120 days and nights into a succinct text. We want to present it with minor corrections and abridgement.

Signs of time on an expedition business card

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

25 YEARS LATER After our return to Minsk, journalists of various media invariably showed interest in the trip. In particular, shortly after the return, a large TV report was filmed and showed on “Channel 8” (Minsk). There were publications in the newspapers “Vecherniy Minsk”, “Komsomolskaya Pravda in Belarus”, “7 days”, the children’s magazine “Byarozka”, the children’s newspaper “Pioneer of Belarus”, the magazine “Belarus”. The trip was covered in the programs of the radio station “Belarus”, the First Channel of the Belarusian Television, the TV channel “Belarus 2” (formerly the TV channel “Culture”), the Capital TV. Some of the studio recordings can be found on the websites (in archives) of TV channels and on other sites on the Internet. On CTV, in the cycle “Where the Motherland Begins”, the film “State Border” was made about the unique journey along the State Border of Belarus. The International Agency of Records and Achievements positions the project of Ivan and Valentina Zhdanovich as “the world’s fastest foot tour around the country along the State Border” (see: http://marid. ru/pages/record/sport06.html) and provides information about the trip itself. Many moments of the journey, camp life are captured in photographs, some of them were published in the media. Based on the travel materials, numerous publications were prepared for the magazines “Belarus”, “Maladosts”, n e w s p ap e r s “P i n e e r o f B e l a r u s”, “Nastaunitskaya Hazeta”, “Culture”, “Literature and Arts”, the regional newspaper “Lyakhavitski Vesnik”. In April 2012, the travelers were guests of the State Museum of the History of the Belarusian literature, this meeting launched a new museum project “Literary Journeys”. During the trip, we visited places associated with the names of famous writers, met with poets, more than a hundred original poems in Belarusian were written down in our diaries”.

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

us had a family before the trip…) was gradually maturing, many people still do not understand us. As we see today, it descended to the Earth, into our minds, along some invisible steps, lived according to its own laws, which we are unable to understand. Each of us moved along the orbit of our lives, performed official and other duties, and didn’t suspect that somewhere, something had already clicked, some energy threads had connected — and now we are in a joint creative connection. In such cases, they say: this is fate, karma. Who knows… Let’s try to briefly describe what, as it seems to us, can already be expressed in words, made public. After all, as t he y s ay, we have about a quarter of a century of living together behind us. When the era of atheism receded, we both read clever books about the search for truth and “meaning of life”. Then, as we understand it p i today, we did not r is t t th c yet know that the e l neg t o meaning of life is in itself. id n sd In 1993, each of us decided to go res p The to lake Svetloyar near Nizhny Novgorod, Russia: the regional department of education organized educational seminars there, and Minsk residents were informed about this. It was also known that Diveyevo Where do ideas come from? monastery famous for Seraphim of Sarov was not far from there. We got to know It so happened that the idea of hiking each other when we were buying tickets across Belarus arose in our minds thanks to to Nizhny Novgorod at the railway ticket the Christian saints Euphrosyne of Polotsk and Seraphim of Sarov. We can’t say that offices. As a result, four adults and three they appeared to one of us in a dream and children came from Minsk, two of them said: this is your path to truth! Everything were preschoolers under our care. was much more matter-of-fact — and According to a legend, the lake near at the same time incomprehensible. the village of Vladimirskoye has magical Not immediately, not at one moment, powers, and it was to its bottom that the this bold, adventurous idea (each of unconquered city of Kitezh once sank.

However, we did not sur prise the book “Divo” with our journey, as they informed us. Perhaps, if within 120 days spent in the natural environment we had grown wings, or tails, it would have been a miracle. But it is what it is. And we did not apply to the Guinness Book of Records.

25 YEARS LATER

I don’t know what we would do today, if in our minds or at the level of intuition a stubborn, even a stunning idea appeared once again to travel on foot along the Belarusian State Border, which we carried into life in 1996. Of course, today our 120‑day route with a length of 2810 kilometers can be divided into dozens of separate settlemets, road sections and, after making a trip, after seeing something, our new impressions can be described. But, however, that unique perception, past feelings that we experienced almost a quarter of a century ago cannot be brought back and reflected in the diaries of a new journey. And it’s hardly worth it. As we know, you cannot step the same river twice. Especially if it’s a river of time. We were also told about Christian pilgrims who, asking Heaven for healing from a serious illness for themselves or their loved ones, solving some life problems, walk with prayers around the miracle lake. And some, as a sign of humility or establishment of a closer connection with the Almighty, even crawl on their knees with prayers and bows. In a circle. After all, lake Svetloyar itself is almost round in shape.

After the seminar, we, the citizens of Minsk, went to Diveyevo — and there, getting acquainted with monastic life, we learned about an interesting custom associated with a circle-amulet. It turned out that monks, as well as pilgrims, walk around the territory of the monastery every evening with a silent prayer. Go counterclockwise. Without going into details, let’s say: this happens following the example and according to the will of Seraphim of Sarov. We also walked along the sacred groove, which, as the legend says, the God’s Mother herself showed Seraphim of Sarov. The ceremony is observed in the monastery for a very long time and, as they say, was never canceled. But why is this mystical movement is performed in a circle? It is believed that this is how the Diveyevo Monastery is protected and strengthened from various epidemics and misfortunes. However, anyone interested in the details can read about it by googling the topic. Now let’s move back to Belarus, in the early 90s. In Polotsk, when the religion began to return, intellectuals, including the ones from Minsk, used to organize secular holidays in honor of Saint Euphrosyne: June 5, according to the Orthodox calendar, is the day of memory of the saint. One of the authors was supposed to be at such a holiday — Ivan was working as an editor of the culture department in the magazine for teachers “Native word (Rodnoe slovo)”. However, it seemed to him then: for visiting the shrine more impressions, experiences

The first days of the trip. There was still snow.

Hiking outfit

can be received not on a comfortable bus, but if he reaches it on foot — as many believers used to do before. I also remembered our Diveyevo experience. Reflecting together on this Polotsk experience, we came to the conclusion that pilgrimage is just the kind of activity that does not require haste and fuss and in which, incredible as it may seem, “the last one will be the first”. It is symbolic that Euphrosyne herself, as is known from her Life, at the end of her life went on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, to Jerusalem, and there she completed her life path. Meanwhile, our “life orbits” were rapidly approaching. In 1995, when Valentina (then Shimanovich) came to work for the magazine as an executive secretary, the joint “search for truth” prompted us to organize a walking pilgrimage to Polotsk. It was, so to speak, a secular cultural and educational project. However, it was based on the idea that a pilgrimage to Polotsk, “to Euphrosyne”, should be on foot. It used to be traditional for many people. The veterans of the Polotsk region can probably tell about this even now — before the war, thousands of pilgrims went to the relics of Saint Euphrosyne. We expressed our opinion in a small article published in the newspaper “Vecherniy Minsk”. Dozens

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25 YEARS LATER

It was especially difficult to walk along the sandy country roads of the Verkhnyaya Dvina

of volunteers responded to the idea of making a pilgrimage to Polotsk on foot, in order to come there by June 5. But in the end only five started on a journey. We went to Lepel by train, and then we walked. One evening we approached the picturesque village of Orekhovno, not far from the town of Ushachi, Vitebsk region (there we spent the night at local residents). The day was approaching sunset. Heat subsided. And my heart was light and calm. And which of us was the first to say that it would be nice to go all over Belarus, we no longer remember. It seems that this thought came to our heads at the same time. But how? And to what places? And in the name of what? Gradually, the idea of a pedestrian educational and tourist journey from point “A” to point “B” absorbed everything we had seen in Svetloyar, in Diveyevo, and our pilgrimage was leading us… up to Jerusalem. We were joking: if only we could go around the Earth. But in

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

Undoubtedly: a quarter of a century is a period for our country. And we are also well aware: independent Belarus has really transformed over these years. And then, in the spring and summer of 1996, there was still enough postSoviet confusion in the rural areas. But the sprouts of a new life made their way imperiously, rooting into the soil of independence. In that distant 1996, we essentially passed not only along the entire perimeter of Belarus, but as if along the edge of an era. From the height of the past years, it is well understood. the end, it acquired more real outlines and “curled up” in a circle. In Belarus. Circleamulet.

None of us then knew that the invisible clock started the countdown: to the beginning of the “Travelling to the Kingdom of Far Far Away”, which would radically change our life. There were just over 10 months left…

We are getting ready for a long journey Upon returning to Minsk, we shared our impressions and vivid emotions from the pilgrimage to Polotsk with friends. And the closest ones were told about the “pink” idea: to walk around Belarus along the perimeter — right at the state border. However, the question arose: who will allow us, so brave and romantic, to walk near the border for no good reason? We corrected the plan with the word “along”… Looked at the map. No, we won’t be able to walk through forests and swamps — we need at least a path.

25 YEARS LATER And how many kilometers do we have to cover? Here it is, our first travel diary. A writing book in cloth boards of faded lilac color. Yellowed, sun-bleached pages… And in it, at the very beginning, there is the very first document concerning the “Travelling…”. A quotation: “Assessment of the perimeter of Belarus (the length of borders), carried out at home by the leading researcher of the Institute of Geological Sciences, Candidate of Geological Sciences V. M.  Shimanovich. Date — Independence Day — 27.07.95. (As you know, then, on the eve of the national referendum, Independence Day was celebrated on July 27. — Ed.) The perimeter on a map at a scale of 1:1 million = 280 cm. The perimeter on the ground is 2800 km. 27.07.95 (signed by V. M. Shimanovich).” Next to this entry is a postscript: “Calculations were made by Vladimir Shimanovich at our request. It happened shortly after our “pilgrimage to Polotsk” (May-June 1995: Minsk — Lepel (by rail), then on foot: Lepel — Orekhovno — Ushachi — Polotsk). During this pilgrimage, the idea to go around Belarus on foot was announced.” These are the documentary notes… We are sure: Vladimir Shimanovich, who made preliminary calculations, had no idea how far we would all go… As well as we ourselves. After all, at first it seemed to us that talking about the journey was just a game, a drive — nothing more. After all, how to leave everything? What about work? What about families? And where to get money if you don’t work? From the height of the past years, now we think that we were very risky. Maybe in some ways even irrational. But the thought that to go around Belarus along the border on foot would be akin to a protective charm for it, stuck in our heads. Well, physicists say that a person is an energetic unit, which with its thoughts and feelings, movement through life, influences the world around. At that time, many were worried about the way of their young independent native country. And we, too, could not help but think about it. And, of course, we made a decision.

Naturally, the trip should be planned for a warm season. Spring is the best time. Gradually, the date was outlined: closer to Easter. The choice of the “starting point” in the upper part of Belarus was conditioned by the “logic of the dial” — the beginning of the countdown. A beautiful and mysterious name — Druya — weren’t there wise druids, we reasoned? And the railway went close by the border with Latvia: and there were no more rails. Everything pointed at Druya. But we were not one hundred percent sure that we would go. And we lacked boldness, too. Where can we get funds? In the diary there is an envelope on which it is written: Valentina contributed the first 50 dollars “to the road fund” on her birthday: January 14, 1996. Such a gift… Then in this envelope we put fees for the program “Fairy Tales — Wise Hints”, which we jointly hosted on the Republican Radio, for publications in “Native word (Rodnoe slovo)”, “Uchitelskaya Hazeta”. There is also such an entry: “6.02.96. Valya contributed 130,000 (for food)”… In early March, we both resigned f rom t he m ag a z i n e “Nat ive word (Rodnoe slovo)”: we had to solve many different issues. We looked for the emblem of the trip, came up with its name. There were different options. The diary contains a leaflet with the name of the project “Let’s Save Belarus!” Actually it was right, but it looked like a slogan… And we decided to use the language of fairy tales — we had hosted a program about them on the radio. That is why our project was called “Travelling to the Kingdom of Far Far Away”: there is a game in it, and it makes a lot of sense, and we do not come under the fire of opponents. And since we were playing a fairy tale, we decided to have a business

card in this style — by the way, it is pasted on all the diaries. There were our Minsk addresses and telephones. The business card says “Ivan Zhdanovich Valentina Shimanovich”. As a result, the emblem looked like this: a rhombus with a cross inside in the form of a kite, the tail of which turns into a road, above which there is an inscription: “Travelling to the Kingdom of Far Far Away”. The trip was delayed a bit by the procedure of obtaining the permit for trvelling in the border zone, but finally we got it. A copy of the document has survived: “Main Directorate of the Border Troops. To Commander-in-Chief V. Morkovkin. Dear Vasily Fedorovich! We, the citizens of the Republic of Belarus, journalists Ivan Zhdanovich and Valentina Shimanovich, former employees of the magazine “Native word (Rodnye Slovo)”, are planning to hike along the State Border of the Republic of Belarus on April 13 of this year in order to study the life of Belarusians, their beliefs, culture and prepare materials for publication. We ask for your permission to travel in the border regions of Belarus in Apr i l-August 199 6. 09. 04. 96 Ivan Zhdanovich, Valentina Shimanovich.” It’s interesting that all 120 days Ivan walked throughout the border territories without his passport: it was being reregistered. In the diary, there is a temporary certificate with a photo issued by one of the Minsk housing and communal services. Later it turned out that the passport was ready by April 16, 1996. But three days before that, we left Minsk for four long months… To walk around Belarus. Ivan and Valentina Zhdanovich. Photo by autor. To be continued.

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HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!

AH, VAUDEVILLE, VAUDEVILLE!.. The Belarusian State Academic Musical Theater is 50 years old. The anniversary was celebrated traditionally — with a big concert. All artists of the theater participated in it, including the People’s Artist Natalia Gaida and the Honored Artist Vasily Serdyukov, who in their 80s continue to sing on stage. Perhaps fifty years is not that long for a theater. For example, the Bolshoi Theater of Belarus was founded in the 30s of the last century. And Yanka Kupala National Academic Theater is over a century old. But when we talk about a theater, we don’t mean just a place where artists meet with spectators. And, of course, not a “cloakroom”, although, as they say, “everything begins with it”… We are talking about a phenomenon in the world of art. I’ll even say more: we are talking about the birth of a new energy flow. Why not? After all, it is already known that everything beautiful, created by human hands, fills us with spiritual energy, strength… And after the curtain falls and a huge crystal chandelier

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

lights up with soft warm light, you feel harmony and peacefulness in your soul. I am sure that it’s not only me who experiences such emotions. Indeed, I did not see a single vacant seat in the hall of the State Musical Comedy Theater of Belarus that winter, anniversary evening. And this is during the coronavirus pandemic! Obviously, many wanted to get into the atmosphere of celebration and charge themselves with positive energy, which no virus, I would like to think, can resist.

It was recently… But the birth of this phenomenon, as I called the theater, was difficult, according

to the recollections of Vladimir Rylatko (formerly the first Deputy Director of the National Opera and Ballet Theater of Belarus, the First Deputy Culture Minister in 1996–2010, a professional musician. — Auth.). It happened like this: after the dissolution of Mogilev Regional Musical Comedy Theater in 1970 — and this is always a dramatic event in creative life — part of the staff left for Minsk. Under the roof of the then District Officers’ Club, they began preparation for the opening of their first season. It was decided to show the audience a tried-and-true variant, i. e. the heroic comedy “The Lark Sings” to the libretto by Nina Kolaptur and Petr Khorkov. Earlier, while on tour in Minsk,

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY! Mogilev Regional Theater had already shown it to Minsk audience. They liked it… Years later, the performance was renewed and called the premiere. And then the wanderings began. Performances were played at Dzerzhinsky Club, Trade Unions Palace, Railway Workers Palace, Tractor Works Palace, Motor Plant Palace… The creative company acquired its own “house” only ten years later. Then the BSSR State Musical Comedy Theatre moved to a separate building, where it is located to this day: 44 Myasnikov St. Domestic problems associated with the lack of “roof over the head” had adverse effects on the repertoire and acting skills. The theater lagged far behind modern trends. Vladimir Rylatko recalls: “To become a musical theater from a theater of operetta, it was necessary to master new things. Maybe for everyone it was already old, but we were just beginning.” Nevertheless, in 2000 the theater was named Musical, it received the title “Honored collective of the Republic of Belarus”. And nine years later, it became academic. Musicals in the modern sense appeared in the theater ten years ago. According to the actors, changing was not easy. This is what the laureate of the international competition Natalya Dementieva says about it: “In order to acquire a pop style, one should have a good command of academic singing. It was difficult, but over time we mastered it. After all, even the rock opera “Juno” and “Avos” was still performed in a more academic style. “A Glass of Water” by Vladimir Kondrusevich is also considered a musical, but it is composed in a more academic manner. But the recent premiere — “Romeo vs Juliet. XX Later” to the music of Arkady Ukupnik (Russian pop singer, musician. — Auth.) or “Jane Eyre” by Kim Breitburg (Russian music producer, arranger. — Auth.) are the works in a completely different style, they require a purely pop vocal.” Since 2010, the theater staff have traveled outside Belarus more than 60 times, participating in international cultural projects. The artists have visited the CIS and Baltic countries, Poland, Czech Republic, Spain, Portugal, Germany, China.

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СА HAPPY ANNIVERSARY! will be successfully passed. And then the performers will have to look for another premises to stay for a rather long time.

…It was long ago

Today, at the Musical Comedy Theater there are 39 actors-vocalists, including 16 laureates of international competitions, two ballet companies (classical ballet and ballet of operetta and musical), and a professional symphony orchestra. The repertoire includes many diverse performances, ranging from classical operettas to experimental performances. The theater plans… a reconstruction of the building. Director Sergey Pukita hopes that this year the architectural and construction projects will be approved, all the preparatory stages

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

When one thinks about such a roundnumber anniversary as 50 years, one understands that the artists who gave half their lives to the theater stage are even older. And it was a little sad to watch the plays on the theme of the transience of time, which they were performing. Although in general the concert was fun. What an important and difficult skill it is to smile and not to be sad looking into the face of age! In my opinion, Irina Zayanchkovskaya and the laureate of the international competition Denis Nemtsov coped with this task masterfully. They performed a duet of Muryshkina and Tsar (operetta “Russian secret”). According to the story, the aged tsar summoned his father’s beloved maid of honor to recall the word that the tsar had forgotten. But the maid of honor is not young either!.. She is confined to a wheelchair, asleep on her feet and suffers from Parkinson’s disease. Nevertheless, this granny in a lace night cap had enough internal fire and enthusiasm to get up off the chair by the end of the performance and go to dance, despite radiculitis, which got her down from time to time. The audience laughed, and me, too. It’s a long time since I laughed like that! And at the

same time I felt awkward as we were laughing at ourselves, at human weakness. And when Natalia Gaida literally fluttered out onto the stage in a luxurious blue dress — she used to sing in “Lark” on the opening day of the theater 50 years ago — the audience literally froze, as if afraid to frighten off a mirage: a Belarusian legend was on stage. After her performance “Oh, stage, I am faithful to you” (P. Abraham, words by S. Tsiryuk), everyone stood up and gave her standing ovation, which literally brought her to tears. Although, I confess, she was not the only one crying. I felt a lump in my throat touched by the moment. And people on my right, on my left, stealthily wiped tears… So, the anniversary concert was a success! Spectacular and simply amazing! Frankly speaking, I hadn’t felt such a unity of actors and the audience for a long time. I’d go as far as saying that it was phenomenal. The two-act concert passed as if in one breath, at the end of it the presenters even had to repeat that the performance was already over — but they were not heard through the applause. Well, half a century has passed; the Musical Comedy Theater still has many plans ahead. Let all the plans become a reality, let the theater live long, both in terms of creativity and health. And, of course, have grateful spectators. Alisa Gungor

IN THE CONTEXT

NEW IS THE

BASIS OF THE PROGRAM A new state program “Culture of Belarus” for 2021–2025 was adopted with the purpose to create the conditions for effective cultural work and active involvement of Belarusians in the cultural life of the country. Igor Petrishenko, Deputy Prime Minister, told about the priorities of this sphere in the next five years.

The program consists of five subprograms: “Cultural Heritage”, “Art and Creativity”, “Functioning and Infrastructure of Cultural Sphere”, “Belarusians in the World”, “Archives of Belarus”. Thus, the activities of the Cultural Heritage subprogram will contribute to the preservation and effective use of historical and cultural values, increase in the museum- and library-attendance by expansion of the access of different social groups to high-quality and diverse services of these institutions, creation of conditions for further development of the national minorities’ cultures. “In particular, it is planned to place in operation 28 previously unused architectural monuments, to include 20 new intangible values in the State List of Historical and Cultural Values of Belarus, to develop and submit to UNESCO five files on the objects of heritage and intangible works of art,” — said Igor Petrishenko. “Art and Creativity” subprogram will make it possible to improve the conditions for the development of artistic creativity (professional and amateur), folk arts and applied arts (crafts), to achieve high artistic results and economic competitiveness in the field of professional art. It is expected that there will be more Belarusian films on

the country’s cinema screens and TV channels, and conditions will be established for the realization of creative potential of various social groups. According to Igor Petrishenko, the government is also interested in the promotion of the achievements of Belarusian art in the country and abroad. Theater and entertainment organizations will hold at least 13.5 thousand performances and concerts per year. In 2021–2025, 34 events will be organized as part of international cultural cooperation. Among them there are days of national cultures, cinema days, international forums, exhibitions, fairs. Revenue from film shows and other film and entertainment services is estimated at 40.7 million rubles.

All cinemas will be digitized “Functioning and Infrastructure of Cultural Sphere” subprogram envisages an increase in the socio-economic efficiency of infrastructure in the sphere of culture, modernization of cinemas, upgrading facilities and resources, including musical instruments, and acceleration of the formation of national digital cultural content and its integration into the global information space.

“There are plans for construction, reconstruction, restoration, major repairs or modernization of 124 cultural objects. By the end of 2025, all cinemas will be equipped with digital cinema equipment,” — stressed Igor Petrishenko. Within the “Belarusians in the World” subprogram, steps will be taken on dissemination and promotion of the Belarusian culture, history and language in the world, on preservation of the national identity of Belarusians abroad, spiritual values and cultural and historical heritage of the Belarusian people. Besides, it envisages a dialogue between the state and the Belarusian diaspora, access of compatriots to objective information about events in Belarus, strengthening of cooperation with the Belarusian diaspora on the principles of mutual respect and trust. “Archives of Belarus” subprogram implementation will result in the effective formation of the National Archival Fund of Belarus, the creation of conditions for the preservation of archival documents and public interest in archival information. Legal regulation in the field of culture will be further improved. The major objective is the amendments to the Code of Culture. According to BelTA

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PERSONALITY

WHOLE ERA HAS GONE WITH HIM The path in art of the people’s artist of Belarus Leonid Schemelev, his life and destiny as an example of human and creative longevity Notes in two parts. Part One.

Master’s revelations We were acquainted with him. I often fished for a meeting with the master in his studio — I wanted to see his new works, as well as once again to admire those that had already seen, but never had enough of them. And there was much to look at: all the walls in the spacious studio were occupied by his paintings — different in subjects, in color, often in the manner of painting, but all so attractive… We talked a lot — and not only about art. About life. And, of course, about the place of culture in it. And in February I always wished Leonid Dmitrievich happy birthday. And this year the fourth day of the month was circled in the calendar in advance, so that nothing could interfere with the established ritual. I imagined how to my question “How are you doing?” I will hear the familiar for many years “I’m okay!” with an emphasis on each syllable. But it didn’t come true. A little more than two weeks before that, sad news spread all over the country that the legendary Belarusian artist Leonid Schemelev had died at the age of 98.

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In the studio like at home, 2017.

He was born in Vitebsk, and there he spent his childhood. He began to draw at school. Visited exhibitions. Admired the works by Yuri Pen, who was living at that time in the city on the Dvina. He knew him personally. At the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, Schemelev was called into the army. In 1943 he was wounded in action. The victory found him in the south of Ukraine. The war shocked the artist. He often said in interviews that to any creator it is difficult to reveal the military theme — in a movie, in a book or on the canvas. Because tragic

things are more shocking in reality. Nevertheless, Leonid Dmitrievich often painted pictures on a military theme. He graduated from Minsk Art School and the Belarusian Theater and Arts Institute. He was a student of the national artist Vitaly Tsvirko. Then he himself taught at Minsk Art School, at Akhremchik Republican Boarding School for Music and Fine Arts and the Belarusian Polytechnic Institute. In his interviews, he often noted that he couldn’t imagine his life without a canvas and brush:

PERSONALITY

At a vernissage

“Ever yt hing t hat I emb o dy on canvases is my life. These are the people whom I love immensely. And nature, without which I cannot imagine my existence”. In 1982 he became a laureate of the BSSR State Prize, and in 1983 he was awarded the title of People’s Artist of the Republic. Honorary Citizen of Minsk. In 2003, an art gallery of Leonid Schemelev was opened in the capital, where today the largest collection of his paintings and graphics is presented. However, the master’s works are kept in many museums, including the National Art Museum and regional local history museums. There are paintings by Leonid Schemelev in Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow. But Leonid Schemelev didn’t strive for popularity. It found him itself because of the master’s creative talent, which he widely shared with the audience through vivid and meaningful works. His painting is liked by a wide variety of people. Therefore, he will forever remain the people’s artist. Each of his works is a new world of imagery and characters. At the same time, it is a look into history, his hopes for the future. Schemelev, as a master, was capable of conveying his impression of what he had seen and thought out with great artistic talent. In other words, his artistic world went beyond the picture, he helped and

helps the viewer to better comprehend the palette of life. I judge by my meetings with him: Leonid Schemelev was an interesting conversationalist, always free-spoken in judgments and frank in views. Often in

those conversations, the officials responsible for culture were subjected to criticism, e. g. for paying little attention to creative persons, not realizing their needs. He always had something to say: about creativity, and about the place of the artist, and about the national component of art. Here are just some of the master’s answers to the questions that I once had a chance to ask during our meetings. Their retrospective, in my opinion, speaks for itself. — How do you manage to convey per‑ sonal feelings in your works? — To express yourself in art, you need to have an inner flair. The artist’s feelings cannot always be explicitly perceived by society. But time passes — and an insightful author’s view, moreover, a talented one, becomes a value. This is the artist’s personal feeling. It is important to be able to understand his or her way of thinking. And artists can think in a different way than the majority does in painting and in art in general. But reticence doesn’t mean mediocrity. Because to see the world in the way

As if in a dream... the year of 1995

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

PERSONALITY

Attractive images

you want and try to convey it, you need to have experience, albeit subjective. It determines what you want. But it may take long to create a true piece of art. It happens that many things that you feel subconsciously are completely uncommon for society. And you like it. It happens the other way around. This is what makes the artist original. That is why concepts and judgments about art should be very cautious before making a statement: this one is good, and this one… Art is not just painting. It’s not enough to have skills. Sometimes, at first many do not understand a talented artist. — Do you consider yourself a Belaru‑ sian artist? Or is art, including fine art, international? — I just don’t recognize international art. It may exist, but it’s such a mess! This is a misunderstanding of where the artist lives, his social environment and his relations to it. National interest is above all for me. Thank God, we have a vision of national culture, a national idea of art. Personally, I’ve always wanted it to be present in my works. And I strove for the national idea to be connected not only with the present day, but also with the past — this is my attitude to art. After all, if I paint pictures about the war, it is also connected with our life. Peaceful time, people and landscapes must neces-

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sarily be national. And this is my opinion. The viewer who purchases a picture must know that this is the culture of Belarus. In this case it will be easier for him/her to understand its place in European civilization. — If we compare it with world or Eu‑ ropean painting, what is the peculiarity of Belarusian artists? What’s the difference? — Our artists are distinguished not only by their coloristic system of vision, but also by the theme of what they expresses, i. e. a person and life, a person and

nature. This means that they does not copy. The artist’s objective is to express. He/she should look ahead to the future, think about the way their creative work will be understood. It is very important. No wonder that our older generation notices that many young artists depict today’s world too superficially. This worries me a lot. — Does time make impact on creative thinking? — Colossal. Artists have always had special attention to society and to the time. The change of power, the dissolution of the Soviet Union — all this influenced us. But the national culture and its vision do not disintegrate. On the contrary, there is a unification of some thoughts, views. I look at the Belarusian art and note with optimism that many artists identify themselves with the national culture. They link their creative work with the vision, certain emotions that concern them in life. Not all, of course. Everyone still sees life differently. But since I am a Belarusian, I look with interest at this development. — To what extent, in your opinion, are the works of Belarusian artists inter‑ esting for foreign audience? — In my opinion, the feeling of our national culture in painting and interest in it, is noticeable from outside, so to say. As for me, the French and Italians visited my studio. Sometimes they bought works, and talked about the way they understand the

PERSONALITY depicted in the paintings. They were interesting people. Their view of our art is very peculiar. Although it is outdated: we used to live in the Soviet Union, everyone was forced to act on orders. But they see another, free art: its space, its culture are connected with Belarus. — Recognition of the artist — how should it be expressed? When the artist’s paintings are purchased or when the art‑ ist is written, spoken about… — Recognition is a difficult moment. The paintings can be bought, but the artist should develop himself/herself. In the modern understanding of art, recognition is of great importance. First, the work should be accepted by the state, subsidized, presented to people so that they know the artist. I am sure that an important aspect of the artist’s development is the support of the state. To create, you need funds. There should be premises where contemporary artists could exhibit their works. There must be a place where art would be presented. — What is the generalized image of your works? — Most of my paintings are modern portraits, landscapes. But I am also interested in what happened before. I often delve into historical moments. In my works there are subjects related to Napoleon, Pushkin, to the past war. But what attracts me most is still the modern view and modern reality. After all, saturating every-

Daughters, 1976

thing with a military theme is not very good. Of course, we should know history, but it is interesting to see the way people live today, their attitude to the world. In short, I want to emphasize that the time factor plays a very important role in art. — Do you think the work should be beautiful or is it far-fetched? — No, beautiful is not far-fetched. The beauty is brought up. It should be tested by

time, environment, people. Art is a very subtle and complex understanding. It is not for nothing that they say: judgment is development. When there is little judgment, there is little development. — Are you concerned about conserva‑ tion of the Belarusian artistic traditions? So that the line that distinguishes them does not blur, does not disappear? — Yes, Belarusian artists should be interesting in America as well, but for our national identity, national understanding, and national spirit. It is important that thanks to the artists they learn about Belarus: it is always interesting, when there is a strongly marked national culture. We need to rear our national personnel, as they used to say, with much care, including officials responsible for the development of culture. For example, what I used to do for exhibitions in Moscow was sometimes not approved, and later even high officials were quite receptive. To express the spirit of the existing mood, one should have a knack for it. Not just to draw, but to express the essence of, for example, the Belarusian nature. — What is typical of the fine arts in our country today? Is it on the rise or is it an ongoing process?

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

PERSONALITY — I’d say, the second. There has probably never been a rapid development of art. Moreover, our society has changed. Now artists understand their tasks as more difficult than before. There are many questions here. — Is today’s time favorable for crea‑ tivity? — Yes, I think so. But I am already at such an age when you say more than do. — What principles of the Belaru‑ sian art school would you distinguish as most important? — First of all, the school should have a national basis. It’s necessary to feel the national culture. — What is the philosophy of the artist Schemelev? — There are people who surround me. And there is a world that interests me. Our world is Belarusian. I visited many countries, I also painted pictures there. But when I came home, I always worked with

great inspiration! This is the background that a person, who has a homeland, should possess. — Do you know the feeling of creative failure? — Certainly. Creative failures were frequent. My path of life wasn’t easy. Failures also build up character. Strengthen the will. — Would you like people to reflect looking at your works, or just to admire them? — Only to reflect. Admiration is a moment. There should be reflection: why this, and not another. Every artist is to some extent a philosopher. — Is the rural theme close to you? —  I was born in the city. Although Vitebsk was a big village for me then. I saw common people, nature. And that was enough for me to feel affinity to the ground. — You went through the war, but the theme did not become dominating for you…

The artist and his works

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

— In 1943, I was seriously wounded. And I didn’t know, whether I would be an artist or not. But I painted. And there is the very denial of war in every person. I was not immediately interested in the military theme. Moreover, after the war, a new life began. The life of Leonid Schemelev, as well as of many other artists of the older generation, was not easy. His creative biography can be considered a reflection of the country’s history. The artist participated in the Great Patriotic War. Undoubtedly, these dramatic events influenced creativity, determined the message of his painting. — Everything that I embodied in canvases is my life. This is the history of my homeland. This is memory, as one of the most cherished concepts. These are people whom I love endlessly. And nature, without which I cannot imagine my existence, — said Leonid Schemelev. When one has professional and life experience, it is important to be able to pass it on in time. Even in such a very delicate sphere as art. Of course, many people know this famous master first of all by his meaningful paintings, in which the author has passionately realized himself. Meanwhile, I would like Leonid Schemelev to be presented in this publication as an artist who gave all his professional experience to the development of the Belarusian visual culture, as a master whose influence on the work of many contemporary Belarusian painters is multifaceted and fruitful. Actually, one of our last conversations with the master was on this very topic. — To what extent does the profession‑ al and creative growth of a young artist depend on the teacher? — The attitude towards a young artist should be most sincere. A teacher in my view is a person of high culture. He/She doesn’t have to be a great artist himself/herself, but, without doubt, the one who understands what art is. And if it is so, then the student will develop. Because art is the essence of a person who knows. — Do you reason about this based on your own experience? — Of course. I’m not just talking about it, I understood it long ago. I really

PERSONALITY

Leonid Schemelev have been participting in art exhibitions since 1958. His paintings were exhibited in Canada, the USA, France, Italy, Israel, Finland, Germany, Austria, Spain, they were purchased by famous galleries and museums. wanted to teach. It’s too late now, because this work requires a lot of effort. I taught at the school for gifted children, then at the art school. I liked it. But at some point I left to do creative work. — Surely, not every artist can be a teacher. Much depends on his/her cultur‑ al and intellectual background, ability to convey his/her knowledge. — This is the only way to approach pedagogical activity in art. A teacher should be not just an artist, but a person who endlessly loves teaching. That’s the

problem. Pedagogical activity is a connection with the country, with its culture. This is a serious conversation. After all, a teacher is like a creator: he/she always reveals something. — Breaking teacher and student relationships is like a gap between the past and the present. It seems to me, that due to this France has lost much in its fine arts… — That’s good point. But before French artists used to show that there was spirit, there was love for the homeland, for the country, for what surrounded the French in life. And now their art lacks it. — To what extent is modernity pre‑ sented in your works and how much did you bring from the past thereto? — Art is connected with the world, i. e. with everything that was and is. I painted, for example, the war of 1812, and I perceived those events in a modern way. Historical events need to be explained in the way you understand them. This is the point. I am a modern person, I am more concerned about the present. Through it, one can understand both history and the day of tomorrow.

— Once you said that during your trips you got the opportunity to compare what you saw with your homeland. What, in your opinion, distinguishes Belarus from other countries? What is it like for a person who comes here for the first time? — The first thing that should amaze is nature. Belarus is covered with an entire system of clean spring lakes, a network of large and small rivers crossing its territory far and wide. All this provides the local nature with such freshness and richness of colors, which cannot but catch the eye. In fact, our nature does not fade, it only changes colors depending on season, remaining bright and fresh. Luscious greens of spring and summer bloom can be replaced by amazing tones and half tones of autumn. And they just complement and complicate the general color sound of nature, make it solemnly major. And what a transformation in winter — this purity and whiteness of snow, these laces of trees covered with frost make the nature of Belarus fascinating and unique. It is never tired, exhausted by the sun or numb from severe frosts — it is always alive and fresh. Probably, this can explain why there have always been many wonderful landscape painters among Belarusian artists. From the autobiography of the People’s Artist of Belarus Leonid Schemelev:

At the exhibition of L. Schemelev at the National Art Museum

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

PERSONALITY — I was lucky. I lived in Vitebsk, a city of artists. I spent my childhood surrounded by art lovers. Though most of them were amateurs, I learnt about colour, canvases and the smell of fresh painted pictures quite early. The Dvina was nearby, which is still sacred to me. My childhood impressions are the delights of winter skiing, summer plays on the banks of the Dvina, trips to the village to grandmother, and of course, cinema. The war put an end to all this. In 1941, like many others, I went off to war. In 1943, during the liberation of Belarus, I was seriously wounded. After recovery fought again. In a word, I travelled the difficult path of the terrible war of the century. Fate saved me. And the life of an artist for me is the best thing

that was created by God. Admiration for the surrounding world, reflection of amazing paradoxes, joy of creativity make me happy. — What is your attitude to the times when socialist realism reigned in the visual arts? — I want to say that talented masters have always found ways to realize their creative abilities, sometimes creating genuine masterpieces of painting. One of the greatest

БЕЛАРУСЬ. BELARUS 2021

vices of socialist realism was the imposition of conditions for all kinds of flirting with the system that created it, as a way of acquiring all sorts of privileges, titles, positions, etc. Of course, the personality of an artist and his/her life stance was of great importance then. Some were infected with this disease, others were not, but there was a danger of temptation. As for my attitude to this terminology and how many pictures I have on the “historical-revolutionary theme”, it is difficult to answer unequivocally, and to do it in some other way may take a long time. The theme of revolutions and wars is not necessarily an image of shooting people. Sometimes it is enough to show the face of one person to judge the fate of the entire generation. — Judging by your biography, you traveled a lot around the vast country then, visited both Europe and Asia. What did these trips give you as an artist, what did you look for, what did you want to understand? — I really traveled a lot and, first of all, around the country, the Soviet Union then. I visited all fifteen union republics, except the Far East. I travelled abroad a lot. Every trip always resulted in extensive art material. The opportunity to compare was the most important and valuable idea of all those trips. I wanted to understand what encouraged creativity of every famous artist in It is interesting the USSR republics and in foreign countries, what brought them fame at home and abroad. And do you know what I understood? The thing I always knew: any professional art grows up, develops and blossoms only in the native environment — folk art, its culture, its traditions. Artists can reach amazing heights, be famous in their country and even rise to the level of world recognition, become, so to speak, a “supranational” artists, only un-

November 1978

der one condition, i. e. if in their works they are able to select, process, professionally polish what is unique and inimitable in art. —  T h e r e a r e m a ny i m ag e s o f people close to you among your portrait works. — Like any artist, I choose what I love and what impresses me. I love people close to me, and paint them with pleasure. But with no less pleasure I paint portraits of those who are close to me in spirit, in views. And, in my opinion, they are good the way they are. — At art exhibitions of different years, I’ve seen your still lifes, they are as bright, emotional, beautiful as most of your works. Aren’t you confused by the provocative word “beautiful”? After all, quite recently this word was placed alongside the words “prettiness”, “picturesqueness”,”salon” by critics? — I think that being beautiful is one of the qualities and functions of art. No wonder the classic writer stated unequivocally that “beauty will save the world”. Why then should it be treated negatively? Any work of art should be beautiful first of all, because it is created by an artist. And pictorial art even more so, as it has paints. Nature is nice and beautiful because it is multicolored. Remove the colors from it and you will see the desert. And as one good artist said: learn from nature and you will create real art. Folk art is also infused with reverent attitude to beauty, and this is a criterion that can never be false, wrong. Veniamin Mikheev. Photo by autor.

L. Schemelev. Girl with a bouquet of daisies. Portrait of daughter Lyudmila, 1975.

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