I S S U E # 1 2

D E C E M B E R 2 9 , 2 0 2 0 Cultural Resistance in

B E L A R U S I A N C U L T U R E S O L I D A R I T Y F O U N D A T I O N

B E L A R U S I A N P E N C E N T R E A r t

C r e d i t ;

K a t s i a r y n a

P i k i r e n i a

P E N B E L A R U S W I S H E S Y O U A M E R R Y C H R I S T M A S A N D A H A P P Y N E W Y E A R ! H A V E G O O D H E A L T H , S T R O N G N E R V E S A N D F A I T H I N T H E V I C T O R Y O F L O V E ! H A P P I N E S S , J O Y A N D L I G H T T O Y O U !

1 . A R R E S T S A N D 4 . C U L T U R A L R E S I S T A N C E C O N V I C T I O N S 5 . V O I C E S O F 2 . P R E S S U R E , D I S M I S S A L , B A N B E L A U R U S I A N C U L T U R E 3 . R E P R E S S I O N S F O R T H E 6 . I N T E R N A T I O N A L S Y M B O L S S O L I D A R I T Y

S T A N D W I T H B E L A R U S I A N A R T S A N D C U L T U R E C O M M U N I T Y D O N A T E T O

T H E B E L A R U S I A N C U L T U R E S O L I D A R I T Y F O U N D A T I O N

& S A V E O U R S O N G S C A M P A I G N S U P P O R T E D B Y P E N B E L A R U S

0 2 1. Arrests and Convictions

After an appeal, on Kastuś Lisiecki, the editor Jahor Šumski, December 21, the higher- of the Rodnaje Słova photographer and instance court overturned literary magazine, bass designer, was detained the decision of the guitarist of the band near his home in Minsk on Kastryčnicki District Court Recha, was fined 20 basic December 20, was of Minsk of December 7, units [€175] for a flag in sentenced to 13 days of according to which the window, a teacher of administrative arrest. musician and poet Uładź the 68th school in Minsk Lankievič was sentenced to complained about it to the 15 days in jail. By that day, police. Uładź had served the whole term.

Aleś Maŭčanaŭ, an Andrej Prystaŭka, a Uładzimir Jahoŭdzik, a actor, was detained resident of Brest, has children’s writer, was late of December 27 in been detained for the detained on December Minsk as he was seventh time. 27 while heading to the holding a white-red- On December 28, a river to feed birds. white flag in a one- court sentenced Andrej The writer spent the man picket. On to 15 days in jail and night in the Cantralny December 28 he was ordered the destruction District Department of sentenced to 11 days of of the flag with the Internal Affairs and the administrative arrest. Pahonia emblem following day was fined confiscated from the 30 basic units [€257]. detainee.

0 3 2. Pressure, Dismissal, ban

Andrej Hałanaŭ Ilya Silchukoŭ Rehina Sarkisava

At the end of October, five talented professionals were fired from the National Academic Bolshoi Opera and Ballet Theatre for daring to speak out against violence in the country before R E H I N A S A R K I S A V A , A one of their performances. They were conductor Andrej Hałanaŭ, soloist Ilya C O N C E R T M A S T E R A N D F I R S T , concertmaster of the Silchukoŭ V I O L I N O F T H E B O L S H O I orchestra Rehina Sarkisava, musicians of the orchestra Ała Džyhan and T H E A T E R O R C H E S T R A , F I R E D I N . Alaksandra Paciomina L A T E O C T O B E R , L E F T F O R Most of them left Belarus: Rehina Sarkisava and Andrej Hałanaŭ - to V I L N I U S . O N D E C E M B E R 3 , S H E , Ała Džyhan - to Switzerland R E C E I V E D A C A L L F R O M T H E to her daughter, Ilya Silchuk- to the United States. Alaksandra Paciomina P O L I C E D E P A R T M E N T W H O remained in Minsk. W A N T E D H E R T O S H O W U P O N T H E S U M M O N S . R E H I N A I M M E D I A T E L Y P A C K E D H E R B A G S A N D L E F T F O R V I L N I U S .

0 4 Art Credit: Žana Kapuśnikava

I N 4 8 M I N U T E S D I S S A T I S F A C T I O N W A S A F T E R T H E P R O V O K E D B Y Ž A N A O P E N I N G , K A P U Ś N I K A V A ' S B L O C K , S O M E T H E M I C H A I Ł S A V I C K I O F H E R W O R K S R E F L E C T E D G A L L E R Y I N M I N S K C U R R E N T E V E N T S A N D C L O S E D T H E E X H I B I T I O N C O N T A I N E D D I F F E R E N T " E N O U G H " , A N I N T E R N A T I O N A L V E R S I O N S O F T H E W O R D P R O J E C T O F A R T I S T S . " E N O U G H " I N T H E B E L A R U S I A N L A N G U A G E .

Uładzimir Puhač, a musician, member of the Coordination Council, was summoned for an interrogation by the Investigative Committee on 23 December, it lasted for 3.5 hours.

0 5 3. Repressions for the Symbols

Art Credit: Belsat

On December 26, several residents of and had no flags, but 4 buses of OMON Sierabranka district in Minsk organized arrived and detained the participants. a run in Santa Claus costumes, during Hanna Zahurskaja received 20 days which they gave candies to children. of arrest, Volha Sierahłazava was They didn’t chant any political slogans fined 20 basic units [€175].

Viktar Stukaŭ, a human rights activist and journalist from Polack, was fined 10 basic units [€90] for a flag on his balcony, after having been kept behind the bars for 72 hours.

Zmicier Trućko from Biaroza was detained by his apartment and for 72 hours kept in a remand prison for the white-red-white flag on his balcony. The case was sent for revision.

0 6 4. Cultural resistance

T H E B E L A R U S I A N C U L T U R E Its heroes are creative people who S O L I D A R I T Y F O U N D A T I O N A N D suffered during the 2020 protest: journalist Natalla Łubnieŭskaja, actress C R E A T I V E P R O J E C T F R E E D O M Alena Hiranok, duo VAL, musician and B E L A R U S P R E S E N T E D A artist Andruś Takindanh, musician and teacher , gymnast and C O L L A B O R A T I V E P H O T O P R O J E C T . Leanid Paŭlonak former Cirque du Soleil artist Siamion Bukin. Each of them showed what the concept of "FREEDOM" means to them.

An interactive online show Premiere of the animated video for the Hodny Dvor (Worthy Yard) took place for the third time. song "Freedom", a Belarusian version of It’s an online gathering that conveys the the legendary song "Kocham wolność" by atmosphere of the same gatherings of the Polish band Chłopcy z Placu Broni, neighbours which have become a new performed by Zmicier Vajciuškievič. tradition for thousands of .

0 7 An exhibition “We now have one main horse - of Christmas horses has Pahonia*. Automatically it turns into opened in Hrodna. a Christmas gingerbread horse. Snow, horses, so beautiful, a Christmas tale Valancina Šoba, an artist and author of the exhibition, says: ... It is a very special holiday, a holiday of wishes, the horses are also special. I hope that all our wishes will come true." *[Pahonia is the historical of the Grand the Republic of Belarus from 1991 to 1995. It’s now , was also the official emblem of one of the symbols of resistance along with a white- the Belarusian Democratic Republic in 1918 and of red-white flag.]

Top 20 of the Belarusian musical videos of 2020.

Volha Šparaha, philosopher, lecturer at ECLAB, member of the Belarusian PEN Center and the Coordination Council, held an online lecture-talk "Results of Belarus 2020: women find new strength" on women's protests and prospects for the development of the women's movement in Belarus.

0 8 A V I R T U A L M U S E U M O F F L A G S O F N E I G H B O U R H O O D S , D I S T R I C T S , C I T I E S A N D T O W N S , R E G I O N S A N D D I A S P O R A S H A S O P E N E D .

U Ł A D Z I M I R C E Ś L E R ’ S N E W P I E C E “ J U D G E M E N T D A Y ”

0 9 5. voices of belarusian culture

S V I A T Ł A N A A N I K I E J , A N A C T R E S S O F T H E K U P A L A T H E A T E R , W H O L E F T T H E T H E A T E R I N P R O T E S T A L O N G W I T H T H E O T H E R S , T H E B E S T A C T R E S S A C C O R D I N G T O “ W H E N S H O P P I N G , I ’ D O N L Y B U Y T H E 1 5 T H A L L - P O L I S H F E S T I V A L T H E M O S T B A S I C T H I N G S , O N L Y O F C O N T E M P O R A R Y D R A M A , W H O W H A T D O E S N ’ T F E E D T H E T E M P O R A R I L Y L E F T B E L A R U S F O R A U T H O R I T I E S . I T W A S V E R Y P O L A N D . S T E R N . W E A L L H A V E O U R W A Y S O F R E S I S T I N G T H I S S Y S T E M , R E G I M E . E V E R Y D A Y I T B E C O M E S L I K E A M O N A S T E R Y O F S O M E K I N D . I T ’ S C O M P L E T E A S C E T I C I S M I N L I F E , B U T P E O P L E A R E R E A D Y T O E N D U R E W H A T E V E R I F I T H E L P S T O E N D T H E S E T E R R I B L E T I M E S , T H E S E M U R D E R S , T H I S H O R R O R . ”

1 0 V A L Ž Y N A M O R T , A P O E T F R O M M I N S K W H O L I V E S I N I T H A C A , “ W E S E E H O W E V E R Y O N E I S N E W Y O R K , W H E R E S H E T E A C H E S W O R K I N G N O W T O R E M E M B E R , A T T H E P R E S T I G I O U S C O R N E L L B E C A U S E M E M O R Y I S A C T I O N . U N I V E R S I T Y . N O W O N D E R P E O P L E G E T H A R S H S E N T E N C E S F O R W R I T I N G W O R D S O N T H E P A V E M E N T : W E W I L L R E M E M B E R , W E W I L L N O T F O R G E T . T O R E M E M B E R , Y O U N E E D T O B E A B L E T O N O T I C E , Y O U N E E D T O B E A B L E T O N O T I C E S M A L L D E T A I L S , N O T I C E T H E S E I N S C R I P T I O N S O N T H E W A L L S , N O T I C E E A C H O T H E R , K N O W E A C H O T H E R . W H A T I S H A P P E N I N G N O W I S J U S T I N C R E D I B L E . T H I S I S R E A L P O E T R Y E M B O D I E D I N T H E V a l ž y n a ' s p o e t r y c o l l e c t i o n " M u s i c W H O L E C O U N T R Y . T H I S I S A R T . f o r t h e D e a d a n d R e s u r r e c t e d " T H I S I S W H A T A R T D O E S - p u b l i s h e d t h i s y e a r , n a m e d o n e o f N O T I C E S A N D R E M E M B E R S . A N D t h e B e s t P o e t r y B o o k s o f 2 0 2 0 b y N O W O U R W H O L E C O U N T R Y I S T h e N e w Y o r k T i m e s . D O I N G I T . "

1 1 6. international solidarity

A N E X H I B I T I O N " Ż Y V I E B E L A R U Ś " Aleks Nowitski, Ales Pushkin, Anton Snt, H A S B E E N O R G A N I Z E D B Y T H E Ksenia Vysotskaya, Mark Maksimovich, Ś R E M M U S E U M A N D T H E P O Z N A Ń Sergey Shabohin, Vitaly Degtyarev, B R A N C H O F T H E A S S O C I A T I O N O F Wladimir Metelski and Włodzimierz P O L I S H A R T I S T S A N D D E S I G N E R S : Bludnik participated in it. Some of them have been living in for years, others in Belarus.

Spotlights on contemporary Belarusian poetry published in a German volume of texts Macht statt Gewalt oder: Gewalt statt Macht (Belarus: Schritte zur Freiheit oder: Repression, Schikane, Terror). 'Kupalinka' from Three Belarusian Folk Songs performed by Royal Scottish National Orchestra Principal Cello A solo concert of Belarusian opera singer Aliaksej Kisialoŭ and composed by RSNO Principal Horn Christopher Gough. Marharyta Laŭčuk with accompaniment of a Lithuanian pianist Justas Chaponis took place on December 27 at the Radziwill Palace in Nieborów, Poland, at the initiative of Maciej Radziwill.

The premiere of the play "Breathing Together" — testimonies of participants of the events after August 9 in Belarus, Velida Kent, a teacher and artist who’s took place on December 21 at the been creating gingerbread houses Russian Drama Theater in Lithuania. since 2008, has created a gingerbread composition showing the Minsk Red Church Cathedral, “Long Live Belarus” slogan and a group of protestors.

1 3 This newsletter was prepared in cooperation by B E L A R U S I A N C U L T U R E & S O L I D A R I T Y F O U N D A T I O N B E L A R U S I A N P E N C E N T R E

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