Belarus: Speculations about Lukashenko’s health – including crude theories

Politics

Alexander Lukashenko has worked for decades to appear strong, scary and unbreakable. But the Belarusian ruler can no longer maintain this image. The president of the post-Soviet state is weakening. In the past few days he had even disappeared completely from the scene – but now he has reappeared.

And that’s exactly what makes for crude discussions and theories that are spread on social media like Twitter.

But let’s start at the beginning: Alexander Lukashenko was in Moscow on May 9 to celebrate “Victory Day” as a guest of Russian President Vladimir Putin. A bandage on his right hand is already visible in footage of this celebration.

The fact that Lukashenko left the event early and did not appear at a breakfast that Putin had invited caused a stir. The Belarusian President had previously had tea with Putin.

Theories as to whether Putin wants to get rid of Lukashenko and possibly mixed poison in his tea made the rounds.

There were also rumors that Lukashenko stayed in a hospital near the Belarusian capital Minsk after his stay in Moscow – these rumors were never confirmed by the Belarusian government.

Belarusian government remains silent on Lukashenko’s condition

In general, the state authorities had made no comment on the current state of health of the President. One thing was certain: Lukashenko did not appear anywhere at first.

He even missed an annual ceremony in Minsk celebrating loyalty to the former Soviet state’s flag. For the first time in 29 years, Lukashenko did not take part. However, his Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko read a message in Lukashenko’s name. The Russian politician Konstantin Zatulin also tried to put a stop to rumors about the president’s health.

On the Telegram channel Podyom, Zatulin wrote:

A video surfaced on Monday in which Lukashenko spoke about the war in Ukraine and attacks on Russian territory. Striking here: The President looks extremely weak. His voice is hoarse and cracks, his face looks thin and pale. The bandage he was wearing on his right hand a week ago is now on his left hand.

Hardly comparable to Lukashenko, who was a guest at the Russian military parade a week earlier.

Lukashenko disappeared from public view for a week. People even wondered if he might have died. But even after the video was released, not all doubts are apparently gone. “So the video shows that he’s not quite dead yet,” writes a Twitter user.

Lukashenko’s absence: fear of disaster or long-awaited opportunity

Another user posted a GIF under the post showing the dead Bernie Lomax from the 80’s film Always Trouble with Bernie. This was (rather badly than right) prepared in such a way that it appears alive.

Even if some Lukashenko opponents mock his appearance, the president’s state of health can lead to either a great opportunity or a great disaster.

The opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who lives in exile, drew attention to this. On Twitter she writes:

To do this, Tsikhanouskaya continues, one needs the support of the international community.

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya ran in the 2020 presidential elections in Belarus.Image: AP / Markus Schreiber

Lukashenko has ruled Belarus with an iron fist since 1994. He won the first presidential election since the collapse of the Soviet Union and has maintained his grip on the country despite mass anti-government protests that followed a disputed presidential election in 2020.

A man swims in a sea of ​​black-clad police officers. With his white cape he catches the eye. The officials push him roughly in front of them. Equipped with batons and a protective uniform, they drag the man into an armored vehicle. He is unarmed and does not defend himself.