Dictator fetes ... dictator.

In a move that startled absolutely nobody, Venezuelan caudillo Hugo Chávez has bestowed Venezuela's highest honor, The Order of the Liberator, on dictator Aleksandr Lukashenko of Belarus.

The award, given for "meritorious service to Venezuela" was given to Europe's last dictator shortly after Chávez's own attempt to become president for life was narrowly thwarted at the polls. Undaunted by Lukashenko's rotten records on press and political freedoms, Chávez gushed that Lukashenko's Belarus is "a model social state, like the one we are trying to create [in Venezuela]". Venezuelans will doubtlessly be overjoyed to learn that Chávez views Belarus as a political and social role model, which removes those final doubts some Chávez opponents had about leaving the country forever before they're locked up as political prisoners.

Lukashenko blasts Jews, but wants their money

The dictator of Belarus, Alexandr Lukashenko, made the news recently for his bizarre comments on Jews, both within Belarus and without.

Commenting in a radio interview on his recent visit to the city of Babruysk, Lukashenko said:

"It was scary to enter - it was a pigsty! That was mainly a Jewish town, and you know how the Jews treat a place they are living in."

When asked to elucidate, Lukashenko noted:

"Look at Israel, I've been there. Now I don't really want to offend anyone, but they don't care as much about cutting the grass, unlike in Moscow."

No Muscovite Jews were apparently available to comment on their landscaping habits. Lukashenko did, however, call on Jews to return to Babruysk, asking them to bring their money to revitalize the formerly Jewish city.

You know, because the Jews are all rich. Another image boost for Belarus courtesy of Alexandr Lukashenko.

Lukashenko wants to bleach internet "sewer"

Dictator Aleksandr Lukashenko of Belarus says that he will be cracking down on unregulated internet usage in Belarus, in a move pro-democracy advocates say may be a precursor to a wider crackdown on anti-government speech. At present, the internet is the only source for independent news in Belarus, with all newspapers, radio and television produced and edited by government officials. Lukashenko called the state of online news about Belarus "anarchy", and vowed to clean it up, saying, "we cannot allow this great technical success by humankind to become a news sewer."

It is difficult to imagine how Belarus could add even more restrictions on domestic internet users. At present, internet cafe owners are required to report visits of anti-government websites to the police, and people caught publishing any material deemed insulting to the state or Lukashenko himself are targeted for arrest. Belarus does not, however, appear to have a centralized system of internet censorship akin to the infamous Great Firewall of China.

Lukashenko purges security chief

Judging from the news, this appears to have been something of a busy week for the man who has been dubbed "Europe's last dictator", Aleksandr Lukashenko of Belarus.

First, Belarus reported that they had "smashed" a Polish spy ring in Minsk that had been stealing secrets about a proposed joint air defensive system with Russia. And then the next thing you know, Lukashenko goes ahead and purges the chief of Belarus' KGB. Is that how you thank your domestic intelligence agency for busting up a spy ring?

Apparently, the purges reflect an ongoing struggle between Lukashenko and his secret police. Lukashenko claims his removal of KGB chief Stepan Sukhorenko was an "administrative" move, but Lukashenko apparently isn't finished purging his apparatchiks. Next on the chopping block is prime minister Sergei Sidorski who will probably be history sometime this week. What's gotten into Lukashenko, anyway? Is it possible that he's worried about a possible coup d'etat?

Chávez and Lukashenko indignant over "dictator" label

Happy belated Canada Day! While our neighbors to the north were off doing the barbecues and beer thing, Venezuelan caudillo Hugo Chávez was putting the finishing touches on a trip to Minsk, Belarus to hobnob with Europe's last dictator, Aleksandr Lukashenko. After pledging "mutual cooperation" in trade, military affairs (?!) and scientific research, both caudillo and commissar sniffed indignantly about their rotten images abroad. Chávez in particular was indignant, huffing the following:

"We have many obstacles and opponents, above all this empire that calls us dictators."

This is a moment of irony so absolutely perfect, that I can't even bear to ruin it with a sarcastic comment.

Lukashenko and Castro urge world to suck it

Ah, some things never change. The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) has voted to remove two totalitarian police state dictatorships from its human rights blacklist, while moving to "permanently indict" Israel. Belarus and Cuba, both of whom deny even token freedoms and human rights to independent journalists, political dissidents, homosexuals and too many others to list, have been removed from the UNHRC blacklist for reasons nobody is willing to state (on the record, anyway). Israel, on the other hand, now joins countries like North Korea, Haiti (!), the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Sudan, Burma, Burundi, Somalia and Cambodia.

You may recall that the UNHRC was born out of the ashes of the widely reviled and ridiculed United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCRH), and that the new body was supposed to do a better job of keeping countries that neglect, abuse or downright disregard human rights (like Belarus and Cuba) at arm's length. Despite promises that the "new" UNHRC would start with a "clean slate" and would not "target Israel", the UNHRC has morphed, in just over a year, into the disreputable human rights body it was created to replace.

Aleksandr Lukashenko and Raúl Castro (pictured above at left), however, are in no mood to quibble. A win is a win, after all. And while neither man is any mood to legitimize the sudden boost in their image with any actual improvements on human rights in their respective countries, they'll certainly take any good publicity they can get.

UPDATE: Raúl Castro's wife has died at the age of 77. Look for absolutely no changes in Cuban politics to follow.

Video Fidel

I hope someone here can speak Czech and translate this, because I can't get enough this sort of thing. Or this one:









UPDATE: Speaking of requiring a translation, take a look at this article about Belorussian dictator Aleksandr Lukashenko from Azerbaijan. Can anyone tell me what the hell "there are evil wishers who discommend cooperation" is supposed to mean?

Thousands protest against Lukashenko regime

An estimated 10,000 people took to the streets of Minsk on Sunday to protest the increasingly authoritarian regime of Belarusian president Aleksandr Lukashenko. Riot police were on hand to keep the crowd from moving into a large city square, and made "several arrests". The protests were timed to commemorate the fourth anniversary of Lukashenko's last victory in a seriously fraudulent election, and were organized by the leaders of what passes for an opposition party in Belarus.

Known as "the last dictator in Europe", Lukashenko's rule is a throwback to Soviet style authoritarianism both politically and economically. Once seeking reunification with Russia, Lukashenko has recently found himself at odds with Moscow over a natural gas pricing dispute, Lukashenko can ill afford to alienate Russia lest he find himself completely isolated politically.

In the event that he's ousted from power in a coup, it's possible that Lukashenko will still be able to land on his feet. He's always got hockey to fall back on, anyway ...

Dictators on ice!

Belarusian dictator Alexsandr Lukashenko, known as "the last dictator in Europe", has long known that absolute power is laden with juicy perks. From the mansions, to luxury cars and planes, to champagne and caviar, being at the top of the political food chain is a pretty sweet gig if you can get it.

So it comes as no surprise that Lukashenko, who is a die hard ice hockey fan, will be taking to the ice and joining his own national team in hosting an exhibition tournament series against Sweden.

So how do the Swedes feel about traveling to a Soviet style dictatorship to engage in a sporting event that's being staged for no reason beyond gratifying the ego of a tyrant? Swedish player Kenneth Lundberg summed it up succinctly:

We have just looked at the hockey side of things and left politics aside

Figures. Well, it's a safe bet that the 52 year old Lukashenko will be receiving plenty of protection from his teammates on the ice. Who knows? They may even get an extra state ration of toilet paper if they set him up with an assist for a goal!

The last dictator in Europe

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, most Americans have given little thought to what happened with the corpse. After all, we won the cold war, right? Case closed.

Those of us who are fascinated by dictators know that the Soviet implosion created a new golden age of autocrats in the new nations that sprang from the corpse of the USSR. Case in point: the Republic of Belarus and Europe's last dictator, Alexander Lukashenko (seen above with Fidel Castro at right).

Economically, Lukashenko clings tightly to Soviet style state run economy that has turned Belarus into an economic fiefdom of Russia. While politically, Lukashenko has molded Belarus in the imge of the Soviet Union. With dazzling speed, Lukashenko became the paradigm for the post-Soviet Soviet dictator, including squeezing out non-state owned media, using the state security services to crush political dissent - both public and private, and transforming the Belorussian legislature into a rubber stamp parliament. Perestroika and glasnost are still dirty words in Minsk.

Lukashenko's primary tool in his regressive rule has been the complete indifference of the rest of the world to the state of affairs in Belarus. Oh sure, the US State Department and European Union have called him out as a dictator, and human rights organizations wag their fingers, but nobody's actually going to force Lukashenko to step down. It's safe to say that Lukashenko isn't losing any sleep over the targeted sanctions intended to pressure him into making political reforms.

As a popular issue, Belarus is a non-entity. When was the last time you heard a Hollywood movie star or Irish rock band frontman express concern for freedom in Belarus? Quick answer: never. When outsiders think of Belarus at all, they think of it as a borscht eating backwater, or they have no idea it's an independent country. I suppose we should also forget about waiting for a star studded charity Concert for Belarus for that matter, too.

Most outside observers are not quite sure where Lukashenko is heading the ship of state. He has not, as of yet, developed a personality cult or declared himself "president for life". Some have even suggested that Lukashenko is seeking reunification with Mother Russia, a suggestion that likely has Russian president Vladimir Putin creaming his jeans with glee.

Presuming that Lukashenko avoids the pitfalls that tend to befall Soviet-style tyrants (military coups, cirrhosis, etc.), it's a good bet that he will be Europe's last dictator for a long time to come.