POS, democratic parasites Е. or once again about "the boycott" of election.
On the pages of some newspapers (not state) from time to time the old comsomol workers, the former party officials, the present patriots make speech. They say that they are the united opposition, politicians of a new wave, the initiatives. They have no any united opposition. There is the Belorussian National Front (BNF) and УstickersФ to them such as the present United Civil Party (UCP), the rest of the Supreme Council of the 13th- convocation. All of them taken together unite no more than 1 % of the population of Belarus. They may have different names, but it is BNF under different sauces. We build a civil society and are obliged to respect a position of all citizens, including these. But BNF and their chiefs have no any future. I know many present "representatives of the opposition" personally. I assure you, a lot of them are very much many unscrupulous and mercenary people. They beautifully speak and write in the newspapers. But their business and thoughts are absolutely others. They have transformed the opposition into the rubbish hole. They have been removed from "the seed-can", and he already shouts that he is the opposition. I would name them - POS (Party of the offended sectarians). Why are they sectarians? Who has visited their assemblies, will understand me.
Why do not they participate in election? There are several reasons.
The first reason: they will not be elected. They are not trusted. They do not have forces (impotent men) and means.
The second reason: it is not necessary for them. They live well. Under an aura of martyrs and fighters with the mode it is possible to receive means from the trustful western investors. Who will they be in the democratic state? To whom is Lebedko, the former comsomol worker or Domash, an old party official necessary?. They are not able to do anything, they only УfoolФ people. And we do not need such specialists.
The third reason: under the boycott of the election it is possible to get huge means from the same trustful western investors.
The fourth main reason: if the elections will pass in the democratic way, the Supreme Council of the 13th- convocation will not be recognised by anybody. And the key posts in POS are borrowed by the members of this Supreme Council, and they supervise all financial flows going from western countries and the USA on the development of the democracy in the Republic of Belarus. They are not interested in the construction of the democratic society, they want to control money, large money. The basic difference of the politicians of new generation from these "grandfathers" is that we spend the personal means to build the of democracy in the Republic of Belarus, and they live at the expense of this movement. They are the democratic parasites of some kind.
The fifth reason: for Lukashenko the boycott of election is favourable. The West does not recognise the election. All understand this fact. It is very important for the present authority that the democratically adjusted people do not appear in the parliament. They will be unguided. And it is very dangerous to any dictatorship. The elimination of the progressive candidates into the deputies goes in two ways. The first way is the way with the help "of the former" members of a team of A. Lukashenko, with the help of Lebedko, for example, to boycott them. Some people "swallowed the bait" and supported this crazy idea, have left from the game. The boycott is favourable for the present authority and for the other reason. If we allow that it will pass successfully and the deputies will not be elected, A. Lukashenko will have all bases to strengthen the authority. He will declare that the people does not trust the parliament and the parliament is not necessary.
The second way is the elimination of the candidates in the deputies with the help of elective commissions and the Elective Code. The joint actions of POS., democratic parasites and A. Lukashenko, really, will result that we will have the "manual" bodies of the legislative authority for many more years.
I shall describe only some examples of the last struggle of the "formers". 7. 09. 2000 a Semen Domash, a former chairman of the regional executive committee, now an active member of POS gave an extend interview to the newspaper лThe Exchange of the Information ╗. It would be not necessary to pay a lot of attention to this person, but the УraidsФ of such Уrepresentatives of the oppositionФ as Semen Domash on those who participates in the election which become frequent recently simply compel me to state some judgements about such politicians. "The raids" of such figures force us to struggle on two fronts: with the present mode and with such "representatives of the opposition".
Some years ago semen Domash and me began to co-operate, in particular, we were not satisfied with the mode which was established in the country. But this period was very short as my adherents and me very soon understood Semen Domash is. The former party official during the activity in party committees understood the party style and methods of activity and solved to use them to the full at the new opposition field. He began to require unconditional fulfillment of the instructions from those people who supported his idea about the creation of лThe Grodno Initiative╗. It became clear, that this organisation was created only to satisfy Domash and any pluralism of opinions will not be take into consideration by him. A number of organisations separated from лThe Initiative of Semen╗, there were only those organisations which are financially dependent from Semen. There are about 25 members the basic representatives of BNF in it today. When today Semen asserts that he ostensibly represents all opposition of the Grodno region, then he lies. In the interview he said: лI am non-party Е ╗, that does not true. Formally it can be so, but actually "non-party" Semen Domash together with Anatoly Lebedko, the former comsomol official (now he is a chairman of UCP) organised in Grodno the liquidation all objectionable to him party organisations of UCP and "the election" of the pocket chiefs. The management of Grodno BNF is actually supervised by Е. non-party S. Domash. Neither Semen Domash nor Anatoly Lebedko did get rid the party approach to people who have another opinion from themselves. They think that all who thinks differently than they are enemies.
Let's quote some moments from the of Semen, where he concerning those who participate in the election "utters": лI think that it is the complete unscrupulousness and irresponsibility╗ or лTheir belonging to the opposition is imaginary. They are not the serious opponents to the authority, especially its antagonists╗. About Statkevich, Bogdankevich, Chigir and other known political figures who stand to the deputies Semen says: УBy their actions they have already shown, who they are actually. They in further will refuse from their adherence to principles and belonging to the oppositionФ.
In the same spirit Anatoly Lebedko, his former colleague, makes speech(its), so in the newspaper УThe National WillФ from 7. 09. he says: лThe crossing of interests of the mode and лof contractual opposition is available╗. We will hope that this is a temporary phenomenon and to the presidential election the democrats, having released from the casual fellow travellers, will appear as the consolidated force╗. Certainly, he defined that he is "a democrat", and all who do not listen to him are casual "fellow travellers".
What forces such "representatives of the opposition" to hate vividly those who even in such "not democratic" conditions tries to inform up to the people the truth about the facts that actually occurs in Belarus.
A lot of our citizens have questions: лWhy is there no unity among the opposition? In what way is the difference of their position shown?╗ It is possible to answer these questions in such a way. The difference of opinions among the opposition is not an attribute of the weakness, it is a condition for people to have an opportunity to select among different ideas and offers. If to assume that Domashs and Lebedkos "will privatise" the opposition field, it will be a precondition that in further A. Lukashenko will be changed by his former УcolleagueФ Lebedko and he will suppress the opposition, as Lukashenko does it today. Besides on a lot of basic questions we have with them the opposite points of view. For example, in due time on a question to Anatoly Lebedko: лWhat is the difference between his position and the position of BNF?╗ He answered that there is no difference! And speaking about BNF it is possible to tell that thanking their Уactivity" in 1994 at the election Alexander Grigorievich has won and he sometimes thanks them indirectly for their support. Some will tell that it is a nonsense they did not want this! Want they or not it is the other question, but they have made this! How? And so! When in the beginning of 1990s due to efforts of BNF the Belorusian language was introduced coercively, 90 % of the population of Belarus felt that they are foreigners in the country, the violence gave a boomerang effect. A lot of my acquaintances then were indignant: лSome comsomol leaders and leaders of collective farms came from deaf villages and they teach us what language to speak!╗. Alexander Grigorievich, it is necessary to do justice, used this discontent in the pre-election company very successfully. The invaluable service is rendered by them to Grigorich and now. So, for example, on the All-Belorussian congress and in some editions of BNF the idea aroused that they, representatives of BNF, are going to carry out whether "lustration", or "castration" of those who co-operates with the present mode. Personally I heard how a Ostrovsky, an active member of BNF said: лWhen the authority be exchanged, we shall break shoulder-straps from those employees of MIA who are by and large involved in the political reprisals╗. Think, as a man behave himself when somebody is going to cut out something after the leaving of "Grigorich" according to the decision of Уthree men" from BNF. He will protect him, though he knows that "Grigorich" stumped the country. We think that the employees of MIA and officials of the level are the citizens of our country. Many from them understand that the country goes not on the right way of development. The majority of them are the experts with higher education who know their business well and the leaders whose knowledge and experience will be necessary at the future reorganisation of Belarus. They are simply compelled to be УscrewФ of the state machine at the present commanding-management system. Belarus it will be impossible to achieve the consolidation of the society if toФaskФ the citizens who and how liked or disliked the present president.
In it there is our basic difference from "the formers". We want to build a civil society for all citizens of the Republic of Belarus and not just for the elite. They have already made up "the black" lists. They forgotten that they offenders also have families, that they are also citizens of our country with the problems, that they are also people.
We are the Opposition, 90 % of the population of Republic of Belarus, dissatisfied with the politics of A. Lukahenko, and they are POS and no more.
All flows, all changes. Maybe at one time the "formers" were any progress in our society. Now POS is a brake on the way of the development of democracy in Belarus and it should be understood by everybody.
9.09.2000 Valery Levonevsky
