Quotes of the Week (14-30 October)

UDF.BY selected the most significant and interesting statements, in our opinion, that were made on the previous week in Belarus.

1. Lilia Ananich, First Deputy Information Minister of Belarus. October 27 after a meeting of Vitebsk Region Executive Committee:

"The media - this is not the fourth power, but the state power's partner. It is not necessary to hush up difficulties, to move away from solving problems of a man, but it is also unacceptable to go down to the level of carping."

It seems, in order to consolidate partnership of some media with the state power, the government decided to award medals to the particularly "excelled" journalists. Thus, the medal of the Fatherland III degree was awarded to the chief editor of "Sovetskaya Belorussia" Pavel Yakubovich, and the chief editor of "Respublika" Anatoly Lemeshonok received the medal of Merit. Not all journalists please the state and establish "partnership" with it. But even those representatives of the "fourth power" are not deprived of attention. For example, the journalist of "Moskovsky Komsomolets" Igor Karmazin on October 25 was deported from Belarus, and on October 27 three independent journalists received a summons to the General Prosecutor's Office.

2. President Aleksandr Lukashenka. October 25 at a meeting with members of the "Writers' Union":

"It shouldn't be censorship or taboo subjects in the modern Belarusian literature, except, of course, those of inhumane and immoral. I would ask you to easily raise in your books social, world outlook and moral issues of our time. But do not lower yourself to slander and vulgarity".

Belarusian journalist and writer Viktor Martinovich doesn't agree with the president. He believes that after the phrase "should not be censorship" must be a point, but in our country there is a comma, and the head of state speaks about the "inhumane and immoral" works. Among them, in the opinion of the writer, are almost all the relevant Belarusian books written over the past 10 years.

3. Oleg Kachan, Minister of Sports and Tourism. At the opening of the exhibition "Tourism in Belarus," October 26:

"Hotel for $200 is not expensive. I have recently came back from a business trip, where I lived in a room for $230. And I'll tell you, our rooms look better".

Of course, inexpensive. Especially if you live in a hotel not at your own expense, but at the State one, that is, at the expense of taxpayers. Their average salary in our country is a little bit more than $230. On the other hand, according to Kachan's logic, any citizen of Belarus can feel like a minister ... but only once a month.

4. Liavon Volski, Belarusian musician. From the interview on the termination of interview on TUT.BY, October 25:

"What kind of provocation? It was an act of terrorism!"

That's how the famous Belarusian artist commented his disconnection from the live broadcast on TUT.BY. The incident occurred at runtime of a satirical song about a fictional character Savka. Hero is the Chief Electoral Officer, who bungled in calculations and got it in the neck. And in the song he repents before his authorities.

"We had a reason to to do this, when Lavon began to mock the state officials", Yuri Zisser, Director General of the portal justified oneself. The musician answered it by writing another song on behalf of Savka, where he is glad that he is finally recognized as the real "public face".

5. Vasily Utkin, the sports commentator. On the air of radio "Echo Moskvy":

"Viktor Goncharenko, the coach of BATE should burn in hell".

While sitting at a desk with a glass of wine, Utkin minced no words when evaluating football club BATE Borisov and his coach Viktor Goncharenko.

It seems, that love of presidents the integrators to correspondence via mass media is infectious for other citizens too. BATE leadership answered Utkin in an open letter, which showed that, the national football has a potential not only on football fields but also on the comic ones.