Editing Alexander Lukashenko (section)

==Public life==
{{See also|2020–2021 Belarusian protests}}

===Controversial statements===
{{see also|Lukashisms}}
Lukashenko has made several controversial statements during his presidency which have been regarded as [[antisemitism|antisemitic]], [[homophobic]] and [[misogyni]]stic.

In 1995, Lukashenko made a remark in which he named [[Adolf Hitler]] as a [[role model]] for his presidential system in Belarus: "The history of Germany is a copy of the history of Belarus. Germany was raised from ruins thanks to firm authority and not everything connected with that well-known figure Hitler was bad. German order evolved over the centuries and attained its peak under Hitler. This corresponds with our understanding of a presidential republic and the role of a president in it."<ref>{{cite news| title= Bigotry in Belarus| date= 20 October 2007| work= [[The Jerusalem Post]]| url= http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Editorials/Bigotry-in-Belarus| access-date= 6 April 2013| archive-date= 14 July 2014| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140714223137/http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Editorials/Bigotry-in-Belarus| url-status= live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| title= Belarus leader defends Hitler praise| date= 27 November 1995| work= [[UPI]]| url= https://www.upi.com/Archives/1995/11/27/Belarus-leader-defends-Hitler-praise/9348817448400/| access-date= 11 April 2021| archive-date= 11 April 2021| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210411194955/https://www.upi.com/Archives/1995/11/27/Belarus-leader-defends-Hitler-praise/9348817448400/| url-status= live}}</ref> Lukashenko refused to take the quote back, but stated that the consequences of Hitler's leadership style in foreign policy had been bad.<ref>{{cite news| title= LUKASHENKO REFUSES TO RETRACT PRAISE OF HITLER.| date= 28 November 1995| work= [[Jamestown Foundation]]| url= https://jamestown.org/program/lukashenko-refuses-to-retract-praise-of-hitler/| access-date= 11 April 2021| archive-date= 11 April 2021| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210411200514/https://jamestown.org/program/lukashenko-refuses-to-retract-praise-of-hitler/| url-status= live}}</ref>

In October 2007, Lukashenko was accused of making [[Antisemitism|antisemitic]] comments; addressing the "miserable state of the city of [[Babruysk]]" on a live broadcast on state radio, he stated: "This is a Jewish city, and the Jews are not concerned for the place they live in. They have turned Babruysk into a [[pigsty]]. Look at Israel—I was there and saw it myself ... I call on Jews who have money to come back to Babruysk."<ref>In 1926 there were 21,558 Jews in Babruysk or 42% of the town's population; by 1989, they numbered just over 4% and by 1999 a mere 0.6%. ''See [http://www.jhrgbelarus.org/AboutBelarus_articles.php Jewish Heritage Research Group in Belarus] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181002103123/http://www.jhrgbelarus.org/AboutBelarus_articles.php |date=2 October 2018 }}''</ref><ref name="semite">{{cite news|first=Ronny |last=Sofer |title=Belarus president attacks Jews |date=18 October 2007 |publisher=Yedioth Internet |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3461548,00.html |work=Ynet News |access-date=19 October 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071020040806/http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0%2C7340%2CL-3461548%2C00.html |archive-date=20 October 2007 |url-status=live}}</ref> Members of the [[US House of Representatives]] sent a letter to the Belarusian ambassador to the US, [[Mikhail Khvostov]], addressing Lukashenko's comments with a strong request to retract them,<ref name="kirk">{{cite web|url=http://www.house.gov/list/press/il10_kirk/Kirk_Hastings_Call_on_Belarusian_President_to_Apologize_for_Remarks.html |title=Kirk-Hastings Letter Calls on Belarusian President to Apologize for Blatantly Anti-Semitic Remarks |access-date=1 November 2007 |publisher=Office of Rep. Mark Steven Kirk |year=2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071103135642/http://www.house.gov/list/press/il10_kirk/Kirk_Hastings_Call_on_Belarusian_President_to_Apologize_for_Remarks.html |archive-date=3 November 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref> and the comments also caused a negative reaction from Israel.<ref>{{cite news|title=FM Livni condemns anti-Semitic remarks made by Belarusian President |date=18 October 2007 |publisher=Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs |url=http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/About+the+Ministry/MFA+Spokesman/2007/FM+Livni+condemns+anti-Semitic+remarks+made+by+Belarusian+President+18-Oct-2007.htm |access-date=19 October 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071021083832/http://mfa.gov.il/MFA/About%2Bthe%2BMinistry/MFA%2BSpokesman/2007/FM%2BLivni%2Bcondemns%2Banti-Semitic%2Bremarks%2Bmade%2Bby%2BBelarusian%2BPresident%2B18-Oct-2007.htm |archive-date=21 October 2007 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Consequently, Pavel Yakubovich, editor of ''Belarus Today'', was sent to Israel, and in a meeting with the [[Foreign Affairs Minister of Israel|Israel Foreign Ministry]] said that Lukashenko's comment was "a mistake that was said jokingly, and does not represent his positions regarding the Jewish people" and that he was "anything but anti-Semitic," and had been "insulted by the mere accusation."<ref>{{cite news | title= News in Brief |date=31 October 2007 | work=[[Haaretz]]| url =http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/918674.htmll| access-date = 1 November 2007}}</ref> The Belarusian Ambassador to Israel, Igor Leshchenya, stated that the president had a "kind attitude toward the Jewish people", and Sergei Rychenko, the press secretary at the Belarusian Embassy in Tel Aviv, said parts of Lukashenko's comments had been mistranslated.<ref>{{cite news |author=Herb Keinon |title=Belarus to send envoy to Israel |date=25 October 2007 |work=[[The Jerusalem Post]] |url=https://www.jpost.com/Israel/Belarus-to-send-envoy-to-Israel |access-date=10 May 2020 |archive-date=10 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200510013216/https://www.jpost.com/Israel/Belarus-to-send-envoy-to-Israel |url-status=live }}</ref>

On 4 March 2012, two days after EU leaders (including openly gay German Foreign Minister [[Guido Westerwelle]]) had called for new measures to pressure Lukashenko over alleged human rights abuses in Belarus at a summit in Brussels, Lukashenko provoked diplomatic rebuke from Germany after commenting that it was "better to be a dictator than gay"<ref>[http://www.euronews.com/2012/03/05/germany-rebukes-lukashenko-over-anti-gay-comment Germany rebukes Lukashenko over anti-gay comment | euronews, world news] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121212020027/http://www.euronews.com/2012/03/05/germany-rebukes-lukashenko-over-anti-gay-comment/ |date=12 December 2012 }}. Euronews.com (5 March 2012). Retrieved 19 May 2012.</ref> in response to Westerwelle having referred to him as "Europe's last dictator" during the meeting.<ref name="reuters1">{{cite news|date=4 March 2012|title=Belarus's Lukashenko: "Better a dictator than gay"|work=[[Reuters]]|location=Berlin|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-belarus-dicator-idUSTRE8230T320120304|quote=...German Foreign Minister's branding him 'Europe's last dictator'|access-date=5 July 2021|archive-date=6 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151006194656/http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/04/us-belarus-dicator-idUSTRE8230T320120304|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120305135136/http://worldnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/03/05/10580407-better-a-dictator-than-gay-belarus-president-alexander-lukashenko-says World News – 'Better a dictator than gay,' Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko says]. MSN.com (5 March 2012). Retrieved 19 May 2012.</ref>

After some of the initial candidates for the [[2020 Belarusian presidential election]] were imprisoned, three women involved with the candidates, led by [[Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya]] emerged as leading opposition against him and contested the results of the election. Lukashenko has spoken dismissively about the role of [[Women in Belarus|women in Belarusian society]], saying that "society is not mature enough to vote for a woman" and, referring specifically to Tsikanouskaya, that "she just cooked a tasty cutlet, maybe fed the children, and the cutlet smelled nice [...] And now there's supposed to be a debate about some issues" and that the burden of the presidency would cause her to "collapse, poor thing".<ref>{{Cite news|last=Nechepurenko|first=Ivan|date=11 October 2020|title=In Belarus, Women Led the Protests and Shattered Stereotypes|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/11/world/europe/in-belarus-women-led-the-protests-and-shattered-stereotypes.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201011041037/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/11/world/europe/in-belarus-women-led-the-protests-and-shattered-stereotypes.html |archive-date=11 October 2020 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|access-date=7 February 2021|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Williams|first=Matthias|date=22 July 2020|title=Dismissed as 'poor things', three women try to unseat male president of Belarus|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-belarus-election-opposition-idUSKCN24N1PT|access-date=7 February 2021|archive-date=4 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201104065300/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-belarus-election-opposition-idUSKCN24N1PT|url-status=live}}</ref>

In July 2021, Lukashenko was accused of making [[Antisemitism|antisemitic]] comments during his Independence Day speech to the armed forces; saying "the Jews managed to force the world to remember the Holocaust. The entire world grovels before them and gives in to them. They are afraid to say a single word out of place" and adding "We are tolerant and likeable. We left things alone until it got to the point where others started attacking us and the memory of our efforts." The Israeli government said the comments were "unacceptable" and summoned the [[chargé d'affaires]] at the Belarus embassy in Israel.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.wionews.com/world/world-bows-to-jews-says-belarusian-president-lukashenko-in-anti-semitic-outburst-396448|title=World bows to Jews, says Belarusian President Lukashenko in anti-Semitic outburst|website=Wionews.com|date=7 July 2021 |access-date=3 March 2022|archive-date=2 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220302145741/https://www.wionews.com/world/world-bows-to-jews-says-belarusian-president-lukashenko-in-anti-semitic-outburst-396448|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newsweek.com/belarus-president-condemned-israel-saying-world-bows-jews-over-holocaust-1607733|title=Belarus President condemned by Israel for saying world "bows" to Jews over Holocaust|date=7 July 2021|website=Newsweek.com|access-date=3 March 2022|archive-date=3 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303040943/https://www.newsweek.com/belarus-president-condemned-israel-saying-world-bows-jews-over-holocaust-1607733|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/belarusian-president-whole-world-bows-to-jews-due-to-holocaust-673009|title=Belarusian president: Whole world 'bows' to Jews due to Holocaust|newspaper=[[The Jerusalem Post]]|access-date=3 March 2022|archive-date=2 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220302125446/https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/belarusian-president-whole-world-bows-to-jews-due-to-holocaust-673009|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/belarus-leader-jews-caused-the-world-to-kneel-before-them/|title=Belarus leader: Jews caused the world 'to kneel' before them|website=Timesofisrael.com|access-date=3 March 2022|archive-date=2 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220302130937/https://www.timesofisrael.com/belarus-leader-jews-caused-the-world-to-kneel-before-them/|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Public opinion===
Independent polling is tightly restricted in Belarus.<ref name="Higgins-2020">{{Cite news|last=Higgins|first=Andrew|date=22 June 2020|title=Political Grip Shaky, Belarus Leader Blames Longtime Ally: Russia|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/22/world/europe/belarus-lukashenko-russia.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200622040802/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/22/world/europe/belarus-lukashenko-russia.html |archive-date=22 June 2020 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|access-date=28 June 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Surveys are monopolized by the government, which either does not publish its surveys or uses them for propagandistic purposes.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Shraibman|first=Artyom|title=The House That Lukashenko Built: The Foundation, Evolution, and Future of the Belarusian Regime|url=https://carnegie.ru/2018/04/12/house-that-lukashenko-built-foundation-evolution-and-future-of-belarusian-regime-pub-76059|access-date=28 June 2020|website=Carnegie Moscow Center|language=en|archive-date=18 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180618140615/https://carnegie.ru/2018/04/12/house-that-lukashenko-built-foundation-evolution-and-future-of-belarusian-regime-pub-76059|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Lukashenko's moustache.jpg|thumb|233x233px|Lukashenko's trademark moustache]]

According to a leaked internal poll, a third of the population had trust in Lukashenko.<ref name="Higgins-2020" /> The last credible public poll in Belarus was a 2016 poll showing approximately 30% approval for Lukashenko.<ref>{{Cite web|date=12 June 2020|title=Belarus presidential election: Will the lights go out on Lukashenko?|url=https://www.euronews.com/2020/06/12/belarus-presidential-election-will-the-lights-go-out-on-lukashenko-in-2020|access-date=28 June 2020|website=euronews|language=en|archive-date=13 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200613081430/https://www.euronews.com/2020/06/12/belarus-presidential-election-will-the-lights-go-out-on-lukashenko-in-2020|url-status=live}}</ref>

Lukashenko is referred to as "Batska" ({{lang|be|бацька}}, "father") by his supporters.<ref name="last"/>

During the [[2020–21 Belarusian protests]], opponents of Lukashenko began to refer to him as "'''Sasha 3%'''" on the basis that they believed that he was only supported by three percent of the Belarusian population.<ref>{{cite news|last=Wesolowsky|first=Tony|date=25 June 2020|title=Sasha 3%? Belarusians Poke Fun At President's Slipping Support|url=https://www.rferl.org/a/belarusians-poke-fun-at-president-slipping-support/30690561.html|publisher=Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty|language=en|access-date=18 November 2020|archive-date=23 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201123233535/https://www.rferl.org/a/belarusians-poke-fun-at-president-slipping-support/30690561.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|date=7 August 2020|title=Protests shake up Belarus presidential election|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-53650867|work=BBC News|language=en-GB|access-date=18 November 2020|archive-date=26 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201026215403/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-53650867|url-status=live}}</ref> The term has subsequently become a popular meme within the Belarusian opposition appearing on T-shirts and posters.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://biznesalert.com/august-2020-belarus-presidential-electrions-lukashenko/|title=A hot August in Belarus. Is a breakthrough coming?|last=Marszałkowski|first=Mariusz|date=4 August 2020|website=biznesalert.com|language=en|access-date=18 November 2020|archive-date=27 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201127025233/https://biznesalert.com/august-2020-belarus-presidential-electrions-lukashenko/|url-status=live}}</ref> Lukashenko has also been referred to as "Tarakanishche" ("Cockroach") by his opponents in reference to the poem "[[The Monster Cockroach]]", in which a moustached cockroach inflicts a reign of terror on the other animals before being eaten by a sparrow.<ref name="squash">{{Cite news|last=Wesolowsky|first=Tony|date=27 May 2020|title=Although Banned From Running, Vlogger's Calls To Cast Out 'Cockroach' Lukashenka Resonating With Many Belarusians|language=en|url=https://www.rferl.org/a/banned-from-running-vlogger-s-calls-for-cockroach-lukashenka-to-leave-still-resonate-with-many-belarusians/30638157.html|access-date=18 August 2020|archive-date=26 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200826203153/https://www.rferl.org/a/banned-from-running-vlogger-s-calls-for-cockroach-lukashenka-to-leave-still-resonate-with-many-belarusians/30638157.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Accusations of corruption===
A film produced by [[Nexta]], a Belarusian media service based in Poland, accuses Lukashenko of misappropriating EU funds on residences and automobiles. The film was uploaded to [[Telegram (software)|Telegram]] and [[YouTube]], where it had over 6 million views. Lukashenko did not comment on the film directly, but on a factory visit in March 2021 claimed that opponents were creating a fake story to destabilize the country. Lukashenko states "I want you to understand: I have been working as president for a quarter of a century, and if there were already some billions, as they say, or palaces, I would have already been torn to pieces from all sides." An EU official, Ana Pisonero, said that accusations of Lukashenko misusing EU funds for buildings and residential properties were "speculation".<ref>{{cite news|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-belarus-politics-opposition-idUSKBN2B21FL/|title='Lukashenko. Goldmine': film alleging Belarusian leader has gilded life gets 3 million views online|date=10 March 2021|access-date=30 July 2021|archive-date=25 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211125145352/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-belarus-politics-opposition-idUSKBN2B21FL|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dw.com/en/did-alexander-lukashenko-misuse-eu-funds-in-belarus/a-56865932|publisher=[[Deutsche Welle]]|title=Did Alexander Lukashenko misuse EU funds in Belarus?|access-date=30 July 2021|archive-date=25 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211125145352/https://www.dw.com/en/did-alexander-lukashenko-misuse-eu-funds-in-belarus/a-56865932|url-status=live}}</ref>