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He already had the plane ticket in his pocket and the destination was clear: the next week, the SP national adviser, Fabián Molina (30), wanted to fly to Minsk to meet with opposition supporters for two days. Molina had also planned a visit to the dual Swiss-Belarusian citizen, Natalie Hersche (51), who has been in prison since taking part in a protest a month ago.
But now Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko (66), who has ruled the country with a heavy hand for 26 years, is throwing a monkey wrench into the works. The Belarusian authorities informed Molina that he was “undesirable” in the country.
His visa application was denied, a diplomatic affront. “I am very concerned that Belarus is closing in on dialogue and that international observers cannot get an idea on the ground,” said the foreign policy expert.
Molina criticizes the regime
Since the presidential elections in early August there have been protests practically every day in the country, crushed by Lukashenko’s security forces. The protesters accuse the dictator of having falsified the results of the elections and of having defrauded the opposition leader Svetlana Tichanowskaya (38) of the victory.
Last Monday, the president of the National Council Isabelle Moret (49, FDP) and a six-member parliamentary delegation met with the opposition leader, who has since fled to Lithuania. After the talks, Moret asked the Belarusian government to seek dialogue with the opposition.
Switzerland imposes sanctions
It is not clear if the entry ban that has now been imposed is explicitly directed against the SP politician Molina, who criticized the regime several times and publicly described the presidential election as a “farce”, or if the action is a retaliation against the Official Switzerland.
Because the federal government caught up with the EU last week and imposed sanctions on 40 former and current Belarusian officials. Belarusian Interior Minister Yuri Karayev is among those affected by the property freeze and travel bans. Like you for me, like me for you, Lukashenko could have said himself.
When asked by BLICK, the embassy in Bern announced that Belarus welcomes all contacts that “do not harm the interests of the two countries”. Furthermore, all states have the right to freely decide whether to issue an entry visa.
It’s boiling behind the scenes
One thing is clear: visa denial is a bad sign for Switzerland. As a neutral country, it has an interest in maintaining the best possible diplomatic relations with Belarus. Even more so after several EU states withdrew their ambassadors from Minsk in recent weeks and Lukashenko’s foreign policy contacts are said to be almost exclusively limited to Russian President Vladimir Putin (68).
The Swiss Department of Foreign Affairs (EDA) is officially cautious. “There are regular contacts between Switzerland and Belarus at different levels,” writes the FDFA. These would allow discussing all topics of common interest. Behind the scenes, however, one should probe how broken the relationship with the ruler Lukashenko really is.
One Country, Many Names – The former Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic has been officially known as the Republic of Belarus since 1991. The use of this name is intended to counter the misunderstanding that the country is only a part of Russia. However, this term is slowly gaining acceptance in the German-speaking world. However, the Swiss Foreign Ministry constantly writes “Belarus” and “Belarusian”, with an s. There is also confusion with the flags: Protesters use the old white-red-white Belarusian flag as a sign of identification. The pro-Lukashenko people wear the official red-green flag.
