Holocaust Remembrance Day: Jews from Belarus and Ukraine

   Today is the International Holocaust Remembrance Day. On this day in 1945 the Auschwitz Concentration Camp was liberated by Soviet Army. More than a million people were killed in the death camp. Initially it was directed to Polish political prisoners, then Jewish question was moved along, then Roma and Sinti. Before the World War II two-third of Jewish population in Europe lived in Poland and Eastern Europe (Western Belarus and Western Ukraine). The population of towns in these parts of Belarus and Ukraine consisted from around 40% of Jews. After the war the numbers decreased dramatically. We should always remember it and these tragic facts cannot be denied. As the fact that other human slaughtering is happening nowadays. There are things in this world that have a special meaning for entire mankind and genocide is the biggest of them.

Aushwitz

Belarus opens doors for tourists - visa free regime

    Yesterday Belarusians welcomed a new decree on the visa free entrance for the foreign visitors to Belarus. New decree was anticipated already in September 2016 when the five-days visit to Augustow Canal was introduced. Before visa free regime was established only on the Belarusian site of Bialowieza Forest to where foreign visitors could come crossing the Polish-Belarusian boarder in the forest. From now on the citizens of 80 countries (incl. EU, USA, Japan, Australia and Canada) are able to visit Belarus for five days without a visa with the condition of arriving to the Minsk International Airport. Such possibility does not spread on transit visitors travelling to or from Russia. Finally foreign visitors are able to discover and enjoy the natural beauty of Belarus without additional obstacles.

Bialowieza Forest

Belarus to tax unemployed

                 The most goofy deсree against „social parasites” is getting more active in Belarus. This remedy has been created to “prevent” social dependency of a Belarusian citizen on a state. Currently, all unemployed people are obliged to pay the tax of unemployment. It concerns also people who are not searching for a job – e.g. housewives.  Belarus is not welfare state, and an unemployed person does not receive a financial support from the state so he could pay his rent, bill and food. However, the government states that unemployed people use the state infrastructure. It is a mystery where an unemployed person could find a money to pay a tax, if he does not have an income?

Books that should be always accessible

             We all like different genres of literature and different authors. We read in different languages. Recently I found a very wise quote on the cover of the book written by E. M. Remarque "All Quiet on the Western Front": this book should be printed out in millions of exemplars in different languages, be read in schools and be sent to all fighting groups. Remarque was one of the few being able describe all the tragedies of war: there is no place for glory, there is only hopelessness. To my big surprise I found only one book by Remarque in the biggest book shop in Bonn. And I felt it was not right. Books of Remarque should be always present on the book shelves in Germany as all books of S. Alexievich should be accessible in all book shops in Eastern Europe and Russia. There are things in history that we cannot afford to forget.

Blog's birthday - one year!

                The whole year this blog has served readers as a source of information, recent news, reactions and facts from Eastern Europe and Russia. All materials have been chosen carefully from the dozens of everyday news in order to outline the most important occurrences in the region. Once it was said that the most vital news are written by small print on the last page of the newspaper. There is too much noise out there and it is curtail to see the root of the issue not only its reason. This is how this blog has spent one year. I am grateful to people who have supported me with the idea of blog and to ones who are my constant inspiration!

Special thanks to pixabay.com for almost all pictures posted here!

Castro's death: flowers and tears in Russia

               Why do some Russians and  other post-social countries’ citizens sadden about the death of Fidel Castro? President Putin stated that “the whole era went away along with the death of Castro”. But what was that era? Maybe the era of imprisonment of 5% of Cuba’s population, economical stagnation, significant poverty in the entire state which had a developing economy before the revolution? We are used to praise the people who stands for progress both in human rights and in improvement of human being conditions. What is going to happen with societies which starts to praise persons who were cruel to its people in the name of ideas that do not implicate to any kind of progress? 

Russia and the International Criminal Court

             Russia withdraws from the International Criminal Court (ICC), though it had never ratified the agreement at the first place. It might seem like Putin is bothered by the accusations of Crimea’s occupation or other investigations against Russia. However, it is just another way of making it clear to the world that Russia does not care much about what is going on. Kremlin does not respect the international organizations which serves them as a platforms to show their power and bias. Up until now Russia has not ratified the Paris agreement on Climate Change. It is also another tool to make the rest of the countries to consider Russia as an important partner for negotiations in the international arena.