MINSK, 26 January (BelTA) – While talking to the media on 26 January, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko suggested developing common criteria for assessing democracy and making them uniform for all countries, BelTA has learned.
“It is necessary to define what democracy means. Maybe there are some criteria of democracy? Let us define and use these criteria to assess the United States, the UK, Brussels and Minsk. It is wrong to use some criteria to assess us and others to assess them,” the Belarusian leader said.
The head of state stressed that Belarus is an open country and provided the following example. The president was briefed that representatives of the German media wanted to travel to the Belarusian-Ukrainian border for filming, but Belarusian border guards forbade them to do so. “I told them: ‘What are you doing? You called journalists and forbid them to do something in Belarus. They don't commit terrorist acts, do they?’. They said no. ‘So why are you forbidding them? Call them immediately. If they want, let them go and film. But warn them not to approach the border,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.
“This is democratic; this is normal,” the president pointed out. He noted that in the United States, for example, journalists would hardly be allowed so close to the incumbent president at a polling station during voting. “You would not be allowed even on the doorstep. And you take it calmly. You are afraid,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.
As an example, the head of state cited the information he got hold of. Those are the editorial requirements of one news agency to its correspondents. They openly emphasize the need to present the information in a certain light, to conceal certain facts.
“Journalists have visited Belarus and want to write something. They are told: 'You can't write this, because people in our country would start asking why they have observers and we don't?’ ‘And what about alternative candidates?’ - ‘You don't need to list them. This fact, however, is (literally) impossible to hide, but you name the incumbent head of state and four others, but don't emphasize it. Because we don't have this openness and our citizens can start asking questions.’ What is this called? This is the editorial policy,” Aleksandr Lukashenko explained.
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