Stories about Eastern & Central Europe from March, 2006
Belarus: Letter From Female Prisoners
LJ user kapitan_tanaka translates a letter written by Valyantsina Palyavikova and Larysa Bukholenka, two female prisoners who were jailed for their participation in the post-election protest in Minsk.
Belarus: Election Fraud Video
German-language Media-Ocean switches into English to write about a short video from a polling station in Belarus, which conveys repressive atmosphere during the count and shows how one observer, despite being barred from the table with stacks of bulletins on it, catches a violation that could've benefited Aleksandr Lukashenko, the...
Turkmenistan: Agreement
Writing at neweurasia, Peter discusses the agreement between Turkmenistan and Ukraine to settle gas debts and says Russia looks to be the winner in the dispute.
Poland: Trains
Aaron Fowles of p3 writes about Polish trains: the Osobowy, the Pospieszny, and the rest of them.
Poland: Solidarity 25 Years Ago Isn't Today's Belarus
The beatroot writes about “the difference between [Poland's] Solidarity twenty-five years ago and Belarus today”: the difference is in “imagination, organization and ultimately, Solidarity.”
Belarus: Analysis of Situation
Tobias Ljungvall sums up last week's events in Belarus and makes some forecasts.
Belarus: Many Protesters With Severe Injuries
Ivan Lenin of Rush-Mush translates a post by a Belarusian LJ user on the injuries incurred on the protesters in Minsk during the March 25 rally.
Belarus: KGB Posing as US Embassy
br23 blog writes about Belarus’ KGB posing as the US embassy and beating an opposition activist unconscious.
Ukraine: Tennis at Polling Station
Petro of Petro's Jotter had a chance to see a Ukrainian polling station on Saturday, one day before the vote, at the place where his children have tennis lessons.
Ukraine: Political Puppet Auction
W. Shedd of The Accidental Russophile writes about a political puppet auction held in Kyiv: “[…] each party in Ukraine seems to accuse the others of being puppets for some outside interest. However, these puppets are made from papier-mache instead of flesh and blood.”
Ukraine: Tymoshenko and the Economy
Scott W. Clark of Foreign Notes describes what it might be like for Ukrainian economy if Yulia Tymoshenko becomes prime minister again. LEvko posts a Monday update following Sunday's parliamentary vote.
Ukraine: Elections in Pidhajtsi
Stefan of Dykun is wondering about the results of the vote in Pidhajtsi, the town and county in Ternopil region that had “the highest voter turnout (and the highest percentage of votes for Yushchenko) in Ukraine during the whole 2004 presidential election debacle.” Stefan's relatives work in an election commission...
Russia: Soviet Humor
Lyndon of Scraps of Moscow translates a Soviet-time joke on how people in the West viewed people in the Soviet Union. The joke's still relevant today.
Polish Blogosphere Update
Apparently, according to Real Warsaw, Poland is single-handedly styming EU progress. Poland's recently elected populist government isn't seen as a solution since future-oriented policies appear off the table. However, according to Bernski in the comments section, the problems may be deeper than a newly elected government — shibboleths such as...
Belarus: Wishful Thinking aka ‘Foreign Policy Simulation’
A Fistful of Euros reports on a weird blog called Belarus Today: A News Service Dedicated to Belarus and the Belarusian People. It covers such an unlikely event as Lukashenko's assassination – and its pretty violent aftermath. There's a disclaimer at the bottom of the page, however, which reads: “This...
Russia: “Seven Sisters” – Part 2
Digenis posts part 2 of a series on Moscow's Stalin-era skyscrapers, the Seven Sisters. “The exact number of apartments [in the building on Kotelnicheskaya Naberezhnaya] has been rather difficult to track down. […] anywhere from 344 to ‘about 800′.”
Russia: Illustrator Ivan Bilibin
The Accidental Russophile examines life and work of Russian illustrator Ivan Bilibin.
Belarus: Arrests, Courts and Anti-Media Flash Mob
French journalist writing for Liberation has just been arrested in Minsk; actually so many people have been arrested that, unprecedentally, Minsk courts will be working on Saturday, reports br23 blog. Andrei Khrapavitski posts a picture from today's flash mob event that took place in Minsk to criticize the performance of...
Belarus: Post-Crackdown Belarus
Ivan Lenin – formerly of Minsk, now of New York – translates a post by LJ user lipski, a Minsk resident, on who benefits from the Oktyabrskaya Sq. crackdown, and shares his thoughts on the country's future: “If anything, the West should engage Belarus as much as possible. Isolation would...
Belarus: Election Observer's Observations
Through negligence, LJ user czalex, a foreign citizen once registered in Belarus (1995-96), was registered to vote in this election. He didn't vote, of course, but visited several polling stations as an observer, and noted a few violations (RUS). This photo, for example, shows how it was made impossible for...
Belarus: Photos of the Camp's Remains
Lj user _frut_ has photos of what remains of the tent camp after the riot police attacked it at night and took away all the protestes.