November 08, 2021

Remembering the Good Times, Lukashenko Style


Remembering the Good Times, Lukashenko Style
Ah, yes, August 2020. Those were the days. Telegram, Pul Pervogo

As you go about your daily business at the Independence Palace in Minsk, Belarus (because we know you stop by regularly), be sure to check out the current display: a small shrine commemorating the cowardly retreat heroic acts of Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko.

The display is made up of Lukashenko's machine gun, a painting, a riot police uniform, a sculpture in the form of an eagle, and a poster with the Belarusian flag, Lukashenko's face, and the saying "Za Batku!," meaning "For the Old Man!" (For the record, Lukashenko is 67: two years younger than Putin.)

It appears that the display is meant to be a government-friendly homage to the unrest seen in Minsk last year. In August 2020, an election (which Lukashenko "won," to the dismay of many Belarusians) sparked massive protests. Decades of a poor human rights record, a stagnant economy, and fumbled COVID measures had taken quite a toll.

When the protests got a little dicey, Lukashenko donned body armor and grabbed a rifle. His young son did the same. But rather than face the protesters (or, God forbid, acquiesce to their demands), Lukashenko and his goons hitched a ride out of town in a helicopter, flying to safety. Fortunately, though, the armor, gun, and smooth-faced adolescent made for a great photo op, painting the dictator as a bit of a victim (which he's not).

The machine gun is purportedly the one brandished by Lukashenko, and the oil painting depicts his decisive choice to run away. The riot police uniform, we assume, is meant to represent those brave souls who took care of those pesky protestors last August. We're not sure what the eagle is meant to represent.

Frankly, we can think of many ways to immortalize Lukashenko that are perhaps a little more appropriate.

You Might Also Like

A Mustachioed Medusa
  • October 27, 2021

A Mustachioed Medusa

What could be more sinister than a Medusa with a mustache? A hint: a Medusa with a mustache and a reputation for being Europe’s last dictator.
Why Didn't We Think Of That?
  • January 13, 2021

Why Didn't We Think Of That?

“If you don't like the current president, only elections can solve the issue.” – President Alexander Lukashenko, of the former Soviet state Belarus, known for having rigged elections last year to continue his run since 1995, among other things.
Party Like It's Belarus
  • January 06, 2021

Party Like It's Belarus

The president of Russia's neighbor Belarus ended 2020 the same way he started it: in denial over the coronavirus pandemic.
Ever-Resilient Lukashenko
  • August 03, 2020

Ever-Resilient Lukashenko

The President of Russia's neighboring Belarus says he had coronavirus, but even that didn't keep him down.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.
The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar (bilingual)

The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar (bilingual)

The fables of Ivan Krylov are rich fonts of Russian cultural wisdom and experience – reading and understanding them is vital to grasping the Russian worldview. This new edition of 62 of Krylov’s tales presents them side-by-side in English and Russian. The wonderfully lyrical translations by Lydia Razran Stone are accompanied by original, whimsical color illustrations by Katya Korobkina.
Murder at the Dacha

Murder at the Dacha

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin has a problem. Several, actually. Not the least of them is the fact that a powerful Soviet boss has been murdered, and Matyushkin's surly commander has given him an unreasonably short time frame to close the case.
Tolstoy Bilingual

Tolstoy Bilingual

This compact, yet surprisingly broad look at the life and work of Tolstoy spans from one of his earliest stories to one of his last, looking at works that made him famous and others that made him notorious. 
93 Untranslatable Russian Words

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.
The Latchkey Murders

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...
Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

A book that dares to explore the humanity of priests and pilgrims, saints and sinners, Faith & Humor has been both a runaway bestseller in Russia and the focus of heated controversy – as often happens when a thoughtful writer takes on sacred cows. The stories, aphorisms, anecdotes, dialogues and adventures in this volume comprise an encyclopedia of modern Russian Orthodoxy, and thereby of Russian life.
A Taste of Chekhov

A Taste of Chekhov

This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.
Chekhov Bilingual

Chekhov Bilingual

Some of Chekhov's most beloved stories, with English and accented Russian on facing pages throughout. 

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955