N E W S L E T T E R # 4

N O V E M B E R 3 , 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 Photo Credit: Katsia Maskaliova

1 . A R R E S T S The “people's ultimatum” expired on October 25, and many cultural figures, 2 . P R E S S U R E A N D D I S M I S S A L sometimes entire collectives, joined the nationwide strike. There’s been an escalation of pressure, but the regime 3 . C U L T U R A L R E S I S T A N C E can’t restrain the freedom of thought and creativity any longer. 4 . V O I C E O F B E L A U R U S I A N The Belarusian Cultural Solidarity C U L T U R E Foundation called on all cultural figures to join the National Strike, and for our colleagues abroad to organize 5 . I N T E R N A T I O N A L S O L I D A R I T Y solidarity actions in order to give Belarusians moral and financial 6 . A U C T I O N T O H E L P support. B E L A R U S I A N C U L T U R A L For donations, please refer to the F I G U R E S Facebook page of the BCSF or donate via this page.

0 2 1. Arrests

Eduard Akulin, a poet and bard, was detained on October 26 in as he was standing in a solidarity chain. On October 27, his case was sent for reconsideration.

Alena Hironak, an actress, was detained during peaceful protests in Minsk on October 26. In the evening of the same day she was released after a report had been drawn up.

“ I N T H E P O L I C E V A N , A M A N W A S L Y I N G I N T H E A I S L E . I S A I D I W A S N ’ T G O I N G T O M O V E F O R W A R D U N T I L T H E Y P I C K E D U P T H E M A N . T H E Y H I T M E O N M Y H E A D S E V E R A L T I M E S ,

D R A G G E D M E I N , A N D P h o

T I G H T E N E D M Y H A N D S t o

W I T H A S T R A I N E R B E H I N D C r e d

M Y B A C K ” , A L E N A T O L D i t :

R A D I O L I B E R T Y / R A D I O R a d i

F R E E E U R O P E A B O U T T H E o

S

C I R C U M S T A N C E S O F H E R v a b

D E T E N T I O N . o d a

0 3 P h o t o

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C h a r t e r 9 7 . o r g

Ihar Alinevich, a former political Ihar is now in the KGB detention prisoner and activist of the anarchist center and he, together with two movement, laureate of a PEN Belarus other activists of the anarchist award and a Viktar Ivashkevich movement, is sewed by Article 289 National Prize for Human Rights, was of the "Terrorism Act" and the article detained while crossing the state 295 "Illegal arms turnover" of the border of Belarus on the night of Criminal Code of Belarus. October 28-29.

Halina Kazimirouskaya, a director of the Concordia choir and wife of a Belarusian musician Zmitser Vaitsiushkevich, was arrested on October 29 right from her office by plainclothes men. On November 2, Halina was fined 60 basic units (526 Euro).

Pyotr Marchanka, a guitarist of a Belarusian fantasy folk band Irdorath, which has become quite legendary over the last months due to playing their music in the crowd on Sunday marches, was detained during such a march on November 1. The following day, he was fined 15 basic units (131 Euro).

0 4 2. Pressure and Dismissal

For October 30, 12 actors and actresses have been fired from the Hrodna Regional Drama Theatre for joining and supporting the nationwide strike. All of them call for restoring the law in the country, releasing political prisoners and holding new transparent elections. All the upcoming shows and rehearsals in the theatre have been canceled.

A number of key musicians have been dismissed from the National Academic Bolshoi Opera and Ballet Theatre in Minsk for supporting the “people’s ultimatum” and signing the Open Letter from the Belarusian Arts and Culture Community. They are a conductor Andrey Halanau, the leading soloist of the theatre, laureate of 16 international vocal competitions Ilya Silchukou, the first violin of the orchestra Rehina Sarkisava, a violinist Ala Dzhyhan and a violist Aliaxandra Patsiomina. “I just do what I have to do, what my heart and conscience tell me. Of course, being fired doesn’t make me happy, there is uncertainty about the future, but what can you do, it’s how all Belarusians live now. My conscience is dearer to me than other things,” Ilya Silchukou said in his interview to Nasha Niva.

Andrey Novik, the leading actor of the Republican Theatre of Belarusian Drama, resigned in solidarity with the strikers and the repressed on October 29. He explains his action by saying that he does not have the strength to go on stage at the state theatre when his colleagues are "thrown out into the street at best." Rehina Sarkisava,

violinist Photo Credit: Parter Magazine, rtbd.by 0 5 P h o

T H R E E S T U D E N T S , S E R A F I M H A N I C H A U , A L I A K S A N D A R t o

C

D A N I L K I N , A N D K A R Y N A C H A K U R , H A V E B E E N E X P E L L E D r e d

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

F

O C T O B E R 2 7 F O R T A K I N G P A R T I N T H E R A L L I E S I N a c e

S O L I D A R I T Y W I T H T H E N A T I O N W I D E S T R I K E . b o o k

Alena Bokhan, Teachers and staff of the Academy of the academic director, refused to sign Arts have been signing an open letter the expulsion order, commenting that urging the institution's leadership to she was "against expelling students stop persecuting students and staff because of their civil position", but who express their civic position, to that is unlikely to help. restore expelled students and stop interfering with peaceful assemblies.

The concert of the band Litesound, scheduled for November 13 in the Minsk Concert Hall, was canceled due to a "governmental event" that is supposed to take place there on the date. Litesound has openly condemned the violence of the security forces after the August 9 election. The band has also supported the "people's ultimatum" and urged its audience to refrain from visiting cultural institutions.

Photo Credit: Radio Svaboda

0 6 3. cultural Resistance

On October 27, the fired cultural figures staged a flash mob in the large hall of the Belarusian State Philharmonic. Before the performance began, they came up to the stage with signs "We are not slaves" and "Culture against violence", after which they chanted "Long live Belarus!" and the audience changed back.

On October 27, at the National Academic Bolshoi Opera and Ballet Theatre in Minsk, before starting to perform, the orchestra stood up and made a statement to the audience that it was difficult for them to perform when there had been so much violence in the country. Most people in the audience supported them with chanting "Long live Belarus!", and the Free Choir sang “Mahutny Bozha” (Belarusian for “Mighty God”), a song off the poem written by Natallia Arsiennieva in 1943 which became a religious anthem of Belarusian immigrants and was proposed as the national anthem of the independent Belarus in the 1990s. It has been sung multiple times in public places over the months of protests following the presidential election and was forbidden by Metropolitan Benjamin two weeks ago.

Belarusian opera star Ilya Silchukou, P

who was fired from the Bolshoi Opera h o

on October 28 for t and Ballet Theatre o

his civic stance, recorded a song C r e

"Mahutny Bozha", it’s very powerful, just d i t :

the way an anthem should be. And the T e

video clip with the protests turned out l e g

fantastic. Follow the link to see the r a video. m ,

Ilya Silchukou, F a

opera star c e b o

Photo Credit: Wikipedia o

0 7 k Night of the Executed Poets

On October 29 in Kurapaty, the event Great Purge by the Soviet secret "Night of the Executed Poets" took police, the NKVD. place despite the arrest of one of the On the night of 29-30 October 1937, organizers – an activist, writer, and over 130 representatives of former political prisoner Zmitsier Belarusian national elite were Dashkevich. He was arrested during executed, among them 22 young a rally on October 25 and sentenced writers. Their manuscripts and to 15 days in jail. correspondence were burnt in the Athletes, scientists, workers, and prison yard. A whole generation of cultural figures recited poems by writers was annihilated overnight, P

Belarusian poets who were shot that their families sent off to camps.This h o day in 1937. year’s commemoration event had a t o

Kurapaty is a wooded area on the special significance because of the C r e outskirts of Minsk, in which a vast parallels with the repressions of the d i t : number of people were executed last months. They are links in the T e l

between 1937 and 1941 during the same chain. e g r a m ,

F a c

Photo Credit: Nasha Niva e b o o

0 8 k N E I G H B O U R H O O D C O M M U N I T I E S D O N ’ T G I V E U P , A N D I N A D D I T I O N T O M U S I C , L E C T U R E S , A N D P E R F O R M A N C E S , T H E Y ’ V E B E E N A L S O F I L L I N G U P W I T H P O E T R Y …

Photo Credit: Katsia Maskaliova, Ksenia Halubovich, Novy Chas 0 9 4. voice of belarusian culture P h o t o

C r e d i t :

o p e r a . o d e s s a . u a

The famous Belarusian conductor “I stand together with my Viachaslau Volich, who was appointed colleagues who have expressed chief conductor of the National Opera their attitude to what is happening and Ballet Theatre on August 24 and in the country. This is a courageous resigned on August 26 and is now in act. There is no politics in it. There Ukraine, said in an interview that he should be a diversity of opinions in was not going to return to Belarus for a society. No development is he worries about his safety. Viachaslau possible without consensus. The also expressed solidarity with the

repression shows only the weakness P

musicians fired from the Opera House: h of the government.” o t o

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6. international solidarity

At the end of the summer, an auction of works by 30 Belarusian artists was organized by Vladey House, the largest platform in Russia that sells contemporary art. A large proportion of the funds raised have been directed to the people affected by the crackdown on protests in Belarus.

A concert of solidarity #ЖывеБеларусь with the participation of Belarusian opera singer Marharyta Liauchuk (on the photo) and Lithuanian pianist Justas Chaponis took place in on October 29. Follow the link to see the recording. You can make a donation to the Belarusian Culture Solidarity Foundation which provides support to Belarusian cultural figures fired in Belarus.

A poetry reading in solidarity with the Belarusian resistance movement took place in the Art Museum of Malmö. Poems by Valzhyna Mort, Yulia Tsimafeeva, Dmitry Strotsev, Hanna Komar and others were read out in Swedish translations. The event was organized by a poet Ida Börjel, publisher Per Bergström, and translator Mikael Nydahl.

Art Credit: Yauhen Shadko The Swedish Royal Theatre in "The fact that such theatres show Stockholm as part of the International active support of the Belarusian Theatre for Solidarity with Belarus people, Belarusian drama, the fact project “Offended. Belarus(sia)” that on this famous stage "Mury" [a presented a play by Andrey Kureichyk protest song] sounds and a huge about the events in Belarus. Earlier national [white-red-white] flag is readings of the play were held in Kiev, flying, that ministers and Hong Kong, Antwerp, London, Los politicians come to see the truth Angeles, , and a dozen other about our protests means a lot," cities. said Andrey Kureichyk.

The American band CocoRosie in collaboration with a Belarusian artist and performer Iryna Anufryieva recorded a protest song "Go Away" and published a music video for it. Follow the link to see the video

Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre has invited conductor Andrei Halanau (on the photo) and Opera soloist Ilya Silchukou, who have been fired from the Bolshoi Theatre in Minsk, to take part in its production.

Photo Credit: Youtube, bolshoibelarus.by 1 2 6. Auction to help Belarusian cultural figures

T W O W E L L - K N O W N B E L A R U S I A N M U S I C I A N S , I H A R V A R A S H K E V I C H A N D Y U R Y S T Y L S K Y , H A V E P R O V I D E D I T E M S F O R A C H A R I T Y A U C T I O N T O H E L P 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 C R E A T E D T O S U P P O R T R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S O F T H E B E L A R U S I A N C U L T U R A L C O M M U N I T Y W H O H A V E S U F F E R E D F O R T H E I R C I V I L P O S I T I O N .

Yury Stylsky is selling his self-portrait. The leader of the legendary rock band "Krama" Ihar Varashkevich is selling his guitar, which he used to compose some of his cult songs. P h o t o

C r e

Photo Credit: tuzinFM.by d i t :

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