Editing Alexander Lukashenko (section)

=== Domestic policy ===
{{See also|Politics of Belarus|Human rights in Belarus}}

The political system of Lukashenko has become colloquially known as  "Lukashism" or "Lukashenkoism".<ref>''Dictionary Of Public Administration'', 2007, {{ISBN|8176257842}}, [https://books.google.com/books?id=Hs0xJORVIHwC&pg=PA274 p. 274] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231015001108/https://books.google.com/books?id=Hs0xJORVIHwC&pg=PA274 |date=15 October 2023 }}</ref> [[John Sweeney (journalist)|John Sweeney]] summarised Lukashism as "a mutant version of the [[Soviet Union]]'s deal with its people: they pretend to pay us, and we pretend to work; we pretend to vote for him; he pretends that the vote is fair".<ref>[[John Sweeney (journalist)|John Sweeney]], [https://neweasterneurope.eu/2013/01/02/the-dark-state-part-ii/ The Dark State – Part II] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231015001109/https://neweasterneurope.eu/2013/01/02/the-dark-state-part-ii/ |date=15 October 2023 }}, 2 January 2013</ref>

Lukashenko promotes himself as a "[[wikt:man of the people|man of the people]]." Lukashenko wanted to rebuild Belarus when he took office;<ref>{{cite news |title=Lukashenko's first term as president |date=16 March 2006 |url=http://brusselsreview.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=211&Itemid=5 |work=Brussels Review |access-date=21 October 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071020194441/http://brusselsreview.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=211&Itemid=5 |archive-date=20 October 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref> the economy was in freefall due to declining industry and lack of demand for Belarusian goods.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://countrystudies.us/belarus/30.htm |title=Belarus&nbsp;– Industry |access-date=8 October 2007 |year=1995 |work=Country Studies |publisher=Library of Congress |archive-date=23 September 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060923085330/http://countrystudies.us/belarus/30.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> Lukashenko kept many industries under the control of the government.<ref>{{cite book | last = Karatnycky | first = Adrian |author2=Alexander J. Motyl|author3=Amanda Schnetzer | title = Nations in Transit, 2001 | publisher = Transaction Publishers |year=2001 | page = 101 | isbn = 0-7658-0897-8}}</ref> In 2001, he stated his intention to improve the [[social welfare]] of his citizens and to make Belarus "powerful and prosperous."<ref>{{cite news | title=Lukashenko Sworn in as Belarusian President | date=21 September 2001 | work=People's Daily | url=http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200109/21/eng20010921_80711.html | access-date=17 October 2007 | archive-date=12 June 2008 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080612210808/http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200109/21/eng20010921_80711.html | url-status=live }}</ref>

With the ascent to power of Lukashenko in 1994, the [[Russification of Belarus|Russification policy]] of Russian Imperial and Soviet era was renewed.<ref name = "Smok">''[https://belarusdigest.com/story/author/vadzim-smok/ Vadzim Smok] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101094557/https://belarusdigest.com/story/author/vadzim-smok/ |date=1 November 2020 }}''. [https://belarusdigest.com/papers/belarusianidentity.pdf Belarusian Identity: the Impact of Lukashenka's Rule] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210418120332/https://belarusdigest.com/papers/belarusianidentity.pdf |date=18 April 2021 }} // ''Analytical Paper.'' Ostrogorski Centre, BelarusDigest, 9 December 2013.</ref><ref>[https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/odr/belarus-has-identity-crisis/ Belarus has an identity crisis] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191226140713/https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/odr/belarus-has-identity-crisis/ |date=26 December 2019 }} // openDemocracy</ref><ref>[http://novychas.by/hramadstva/halounaja-bjada-belarusau-u-belarusi-mova Галоўная бяда беларусаў у Беларусі — мова] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200415164941/https://novychas.by/hramadstva/halounaja-bjada-belarusau-u-belarusi-mova |date=15 April 2020 }} // [[Novy Chas]] {{in lang|be}}</ref><ref>[https://nn.by/?c=ar&i=100322 Аляксандар Русіфікатар] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200425101222/https://nn.by/?c=ar&i=100322 |date=25 April 2020 }} // [[Nasha Niva]] {{in lang|be}}</ref> In 2006, Lukashenko said that people who speak [[Belarusian language]] cannot do anything, because nothing great can be expressed in Belarusian as the Belarusian language is a poor language and there are only two great languages in the world: Russian and English.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Tsurkan |first1=Kate |title=In Lukashenko's Belarus, Belarusian culture is not welcome |url=https://kyivindependent.com/in-lukashenkos-belarus-belarusian-culture-is-not-welcome/ |website=[[The Kyiv Independent]] |access-date=21 January 2024 |date=20 July 2023 |archive-date=27 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240127114605/https://kyivindependent.com/in-lukashenkos-belarus-belarusian-culture-is-not-welcome/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Coakley |first1=Amanda |title=Inside the Fight To Preserve the Belarusian Language |url=https://time.com/6224762/fight-to-preserve-belarusian-language/ |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |access-date=21 January 2024 |language=en |date=28 October 2022 |archive-date=6 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240206010426/https://time.com/6224762/fight-to-preserve-belarusian-language/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Since the November 1996 referendum, Lukashenko has effectively held all governing power in the nation. Under the Constitution, if the House of Representatives rejects his choice for prime minister twice, he has the right to dissolve it. His decrees have greater weight than ordinary legislation. He also has near-absolute control over government spending; parliament can only increase or decrease spending with his permission.<ref name="google1" /> However, the legislature is dominated by his supporters in any event, and there is no substantive opposition to presidential decisions. Indeed, every seat in the lower house has been held by pro-Lukashenko MPs for all but one term since 2004. He also appoints eight members of the upper house, the Council of the Republic, as well as nearly all judges.

====Economy====
{{See also|Economy of Belarus}}
Lukashenko's early economic policies aimed to prevent issues that occurred in other [[post-Soviet states]], such as the establishment of [[oligarchy|oligarchic]] structures and mass unemployment.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.president.gov.by/en/press10663.html |title=The official internet-portal of the President of the Republic of Belarus/State Policy |website=President.gov.by |date=11 May 1998 |access-date=7 January 2013 |archive-date=5 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120505004032/http://www.president.gov.by/en/press10663.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The unemployment rate for the country at the end of 2011 was at 0.6% of the population (of 6.86&nbsp;million eligible workers), a decrease from 1995, when unemployment was 2.9% with a working-eligible population of 5.24&nbsp;million.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://belstat.gov.by/homep/en/indicators/labor.php |title=Labour |website=Belstat.gov.by |access-date=7 January 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011152228/http://belstat.gov.by/homep/en/indicators/labor.php |archive-date=11 October 2007}}</ref> The per-capita [[gross national income]] rose from US$1,423 in 1993 to US$5,830 at the end of 2011.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://data.worldbank.org/country/belarus |title=Belarus: Data |publisher=World Bank |date=30 November 2012 |access-date=7 January 2013 |archive-date=29 December 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121229072259/http://data.worldbank.org/country/belarus |url-status=live }}</ref>

One major economic issue Lukashenko faced throughout his presidency was the value of the Belarusian ruble. For a time it was [[Fixed exchange-rate system|pegged]] to major foreign currencies, such as the [[euro]], US dollar and the [[Russian ruble]] in order to maintain the stability of the Belarusian ruble.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.belta.by/en/news/econom?id=235239 |title=National Bank to peg Belarusian ruble to foreign currency system in 2009 |website=Belta |date=17 June 2008 |access-date=9 January 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130219190847/http://news.belta.by/en/news/econom?id=235239 |archive-date=19 February 2013 }}</ref> Yet, the currency has experienced several periods of [[devaluation]]. A major devaluation took place in 2011 after the government announced that average salaries would increase to US$500.{{Explain|date=July 2019|reason=Relative to what and why is this relevant to a biographical entry rather than the country page}}{{citation needed|date=February 2023}} The 2011 devaluation was the largest on record for the past twenty years according to the World Bank.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90777/90853/7391692.html |title=Ruble devaluation spreads panic among Belarusians |work=People's Daily |date=26 May 2011 |access-date=7 January 2013 |archive-date=14 July 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714124407/http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90777/90853/7391692.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Belarus also had to seek a bailout from international sources and, although it has received loans from China, loans from the IMF and other agencies depend on how Belarus reforms its economy.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-10/30/c_131938257.htm |title=Belarus eyes new IMF loans |agency=Xinhua News Agency |date=30 October 2012 |access-date=7 January 2013 |archive-date=7 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161107013609/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-10/30/c_131938257.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-14706646 |title=RBS agrees to end work for Belarus |publisher=BBC |date=29 August 2011 |access-date=7 January 2013 |archive-date=1 December 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111201224745/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-14706646 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Some critics of Lukashenko, including the opposition group [[Zubr (political organization)|Zubr]], use the term ''Lukashism'' to refer to the [[political system|political]] and [[economic system]] Lukashenko has implemented in Belarus.<ref>Potupa, Aleksandr (2 May 1997). [http://www.jamestown.org/single/?no_cache=1&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=19641&tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=219 "Lukashism" has the potential to spread beyond Belarus] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303233849/http://www.jamestown.org/single/?no_cache=1&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=19641&tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=219 |date=3 March 2016 }}. [[Prism (Jamestown)|Prism]], Volume: 3 Issue: 6.</ref> The term is also used more broadly to refer to an [[authoritarian]] ideology based on a [[cult of personality|cult of his personality]] and nostalgia for Soviet times among certain groups in Belarus.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.open.by/belarus-now/cont/1998/1117/politics/bg5-pol.html |title=A museum to commemorate victims of communism |access-date=13 October 2007 |last=Dubina |first=Yuras |year=1998 |publisher=Belarus Now |quote=Belarusian MPs propose to dedicate a section in the future museum to Lukashism |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928082144/http://www.open.by/belarus-now/cont/1998/1117/politics/bg5-pol.html |archive-date=28 September 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.zubr-belarus.com/english/index.php?show=oldpress/oldpress058 |title=Beware of Lukashism! |access-date=13 October 2007 |publisher=[[Zubr (political organization)|Zubr]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929011937/http://www.zubr-belarus.com/english/index.php?show=oldpress%2Foldpress058 |archive-date=29 September 2007|url-status=dead}}
</ref> <!-- there are more links in the history of [[Lukashism]] that can be used here if desired --> The [[United States Congress|US Congress]] sought to aid the opposition groups by passing the [[Belarus Democracy Act of 2004]] to introduce sanctions against Lukashenko's government and provide financial and other support to the opposition.<ref name="white house">{{cite web |url = https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2004/10/20041020-14.html |title = Statement on the Belarus Democracy Act of 2004 |access-date = 13 October 2007 |author = Office of the Press secretary |date = 20 October 2004 |publisher = The White House |archive-date = 17 June 2009 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090617014259/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2004/10/20041020-14.html |url-status = live }}</ref>

Lukashenko supporters argue that his rule spared Belarus the turmoil that beset many other former Soviet countries.<ref name="BelarusNewsAnalysis">{{cite web |url=http://www.data.minsk.by/belarusnews/032006/528.html |title=Belarus protesters go on trial as new rallies loom |access-date=13 October 2007 |last=Pavlov |first=Nikolai |date=27 March 2006|work=Belarus News and Analysis |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061009213507/http://www.data.minsk.by/belarusnews/032006/528.html |archive-date=9 October 2006 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>[http://chrissmith.house.gov/uploadedfiles/pl108347.pdf The Belarus Democracy Act of 2004] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121212043401/http://chrissmith.house.gov/uploadedfiles/pl108347.pdf |date=12 December 2012 }}. house.gov. 20 October 2004.</ref> Lukashenko commented on the criticism of him by saying: "I've been hearing these accusations for over 10&nbsp;years and we have got used to it. We are not going to answer them. I want to come from the premise that the elections in Belarus are held for ourselves. I am sure that it is the Belarusian people who are the masters in our state."<ref>{{cite news |title=Profile: Alexander Lukashenko |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3882843.stm |work=BBC News |date=9 January 2007 |access-date=13 October 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071017084807/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3882843.stm |archive-date=17 October 2007 |url-status=live}}</ref>

''[[Global Finance (magazine)|Global Finance]]'' magazine listed Belarus as the 115th poorest country in the world in 2024.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Ventura |first1=Luca |title=Poorest Countries in the World 2024 |url=https://gfmag.com/data/economic-data/poorest-country-in-the-world/ |website=[[Global Finance (magazine)|Global Finance]] |access-date=26 January 2025 |date=6 May 2024}}</ref>

====COVID-19 pandemic====
{{main|COVID-19 pandemic in Belarus}}
[[File:Лукашенко- Как закрыли-! Я вас заставил не делать этого! -- Лида. Центральная районная больница.webm|left|thumb|229x229px|Lukashenko visited the Lida Central District Hospital in 2021, during his working trip to the Grodno region.]]
During the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], Lukashenko stated that concerns about the pandemic were a "frenzy and a psychosis" and that working the tractors, drinking vodka and going to saunas could prevent people from infection from the virus. "People are working in tractors. No one is talking about the virus", Lukashenko said on 16 March 2020. "There, the tractor will heal everyone. The fields heal everyone". He also said: "I don't drink, but recently I've been saying that people should not only wash their hands with vodka, but also poison the virus with it. You should drink the equivalent of 40–50 milliliters of rectified spirit daily", but he advised against doing so while at work. Lukashenko described these comments as a joke.<ref>{{cite news|last=Dixon|first=Robyn|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/no-lockdown-here-belaruss-strongman-rejects-coronavirus-risks-he-suggests-saunas-and-vodka/2020/03/27/7aab812c-7025-11ea-a156-0048b62cdb51_story.html|title=No lockdown here: Belarus's strongman rejects coronavirus risks. He suggests saunas and vodka|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=27 March 2020|access-date=8 May 2020|archive-date=8 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200508122325/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/no-lockdown-here-belaruss-strongman-rejects-coronavirus-risks-he-suggests-saunas-and-vodka/2020/03/27/7aab812c-7025-11ea-a156-0048b62cdb51_story.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://edition.cnn.com/2020/03/29/football/football-continues-belarus-coronavirus-lockdown-spt-intl/index.html|publisher=CNN|first=Matias|last=Grez|title=Football is shut down across Europe due to the coronavirus, but in Belarus it's business as usual|access-date=30 March 2020|date=29 March 2020|archive-date=30 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200330010112/https://edition.cnn.com/2020/03/29/football/football-continues-belarus-coronavirus-lockdown-spt-intl/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/europe/belarusian-leader-prescribes-sport-sauna-and-vodka-to-beat-covid-19-1.4217093|title=Belarusian leader prescribes sport, sauna and vodka to beat Covid-19|first=Daniel|last=McLaughlin|newspaper=[[The Irish Times]]|accessdate=4 May 2022|archive-date=28 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221028030241/https://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/europe/belarusian-leader-prescribes-sport-sauna-and-vodka-to-beat-covid-19-1.4217093|url-status=live}}</ref> By early May, Belarus was reported to have 15,000 diagnosed cases, one of the highest per capita rates of infection in Eastern Europe.<ref>{{cite news|last=Khurshudyan|first=Isabelle|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/coronavirus-is-spreading-rapidly-in-belarus-but-its-leader-still-denies-theres-a-problem/2020/05/01/a2532ba0-8964-11ea-80df-d24b35a568ae_story.html|title=Coronavirus is spreading rapidly in Belarus, but its leader still denies there is a problem|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=2 May 2020|access-date=8 May 2020|archive-date=8 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200508071856/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/coronavirus-is-spreading-rapidly-in-belarus-but-its-leader-still-denies-theres-a-problem/2020/05/01/a2532ba0-8964-11ea-80df-d24b35a568ae_story.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

On 28 July 2020, Lukashenko announced he had asymptomatic COVID-19.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Haltiwanger|first=John|title=Europe's last dictator got COVID-19 after telling people they could avoid it by drinking vodka and going to the sauna|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/europe-last-dictator-belarus-lukashenko-covid-19-vodka-sauna-2020-7|access-date=28 July 2020|website=Business Insider|archive-date=28 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200728192003/https://www.businessinsider.com/europe-last-dictator-belarus-lukashenko-covid-19-vodka-sauna-2020-7|url-status=live}}</ref> Neither the Presidential Administration nor the country's health service have commented on this statement.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/belarus-president-alexander-lukashenko-who-said-vodka-would-cure-the-coronavirus-tests-positive-and-recovers|title=Belarus President, Who Said Vodka Would Cure the Coronavirus, Says He Tested Positive and Recovered|first=Blake|last=Montgomery|date=28 July 2020|website=The Daily Beast|access-date=9 August 2020|archive-date=12 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200812102921/https://www.thedailybeast.com/belarus-president-alexander-lukashenko-who-said-vodka-would-cure-the-coronavirus-tests-positive-and-recovers|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-belarus/belarus-president-says-he-survived-coronavirus-on-his-feet-idUSKCN24T258|work=Reuters|title=Belarus president says he survived coronavirus 'on his feet'|date=28 July 2020|access-date=21 April 2021|last1=Makhovsky|first1=Andrei|archive-date=21 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210421145752/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-belarus/belarus-president-says-he-survived-coronavirus-on-his-feet-idUSKCN24T258|url-status=live}}</ref>

On 12 August 2021, Lukashenko stated that he is strongly opposed to making vaccination mandatory. "There will be no mandatory vaccination in Belarus. I am strongly against it. Vaccination will remain voluntary. If a person wants to be vaccinated it is good, if not, let it be".<ref>{{Cite web|date=12 August 2021|title=Lukashenko against mandatory vaccination in Belarus|url=https://eng.belta.by/president/view/lukashenko-against-mandatory-vaccination-in-belarus-142451-2021/|access-date=14 August 2021|website=eng.belta.by|language=en-EN|archive-date=21 January 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220121161107/https://eng.belta.by/president/view/lukashenko-against-mandatory-vaccination-in-belarus-142451-2021/|url-status=live}}</ref>