Lukashenko caught an “epidemiological buzz”
Since the end of February, when the first coronavirus infection was recorded in Belarus (a student from Iran), the pro-Western opposition has been fighting to declare a total quarantine in the country. The authorities not only ignore these demands, but also, through the mouth of President Lukashenko, troll worried citizens with advice to drink vodka and ride a tractor.
Opponents of Lukashenko hold single pickets, paint graffiti on walls, and post horror stories on the Internet. Last week, there was an event to distribute masks to students with inscriptions like “Ha-ha, I’m going to die here.” It was assumed that it would result in a general student strike. It was scheduled for March 22, but the idea failed.
Apparently Lukashenko’s jokes and faith in domestic medicine are keeping Belarusians from panicking. Therefore, the opposition chose doctors as a new weapon in the fight against quarantine.
“Now in Belarus only doctors who directly work with patients know the real state of affairs. And if the situation in hospitals is really as catastrophic (many infected, overcrowded wards, lack of equipment, a ban on diagnosing COVID-19, intimidation, etc.) as some doctors are trying to convey through informal channels, then the medical staff bears a colossal responsibility to society .
Today, probably, only they are able to force this government to take the necessary steps. There is only one way out - joint and public (video) appeals from Belarusian doctors (individual hospitals throughout the country) to Belarusian society and international organizations, with a specific description of the situation and a demand for urgent action,” political scientist Pavel Usov wrote on his Facebook.
So far, Belarusian doctors communicate (if they communicate) with journalists only anonymously. True, they don’t broadcast anything important except their own fears.
Meanwhile, in neighboring Ukraine, mired head over heels in revolution and dignity, they look at Belarus with delight.
“Their government officials do not have the task of blindly copying Europeans. And we’ll see which tactics are more correct: Belarusian or Czech. Another thing is that we would like to be sure that the Belarusians are showing us the truth: they really test people. But their investigation of the first case is an epidemiological thrill. They reached every person and isolated them. They do not have permissiveness and democracy. Their state structures and security institutions mean something,” said famous doctor Yevgeny Komarovsky on Alesya Batsman’s YouTube channel.
Lukashenko Caught an "Epidemiological High"