Svetlana Karaleva: Youth Parliament in Belarus is a beautiful combination of phantom words

If the Belarusian authorities want to create a youth parliament, they should clearly announce their objectives and the rules for this body functioning. This comment was voiced by Svetlana Karaleva, an expert of the Alternative Youth Platform to...

If the Belarusian authorities want to create a youth parliament, they should clearly announce their objectives and the rules for this body functioning. This comment was voiced by Svetlana Karaleva, an expert of the Alternative Youth Platform to Information service of "EuroBelarus": "Otherwise there will be a profanation!"

About the initiative of creating the Youth Parliament in 2012 was told by Vladimir Kazbanov, the chairman of the Young Scientists Council of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus.

According to him, this body would represent the interests of the republic in the international arena, in cooperation with counterparts in the CIS countries. Members of the Youth Parliament would defend the political interests of the state, making the plane change in current legislation, participate in the development of new legislation. It is planned that the parliamentarians will have information about the state of affairs in the country’s science, education, trade, culture and other fields and to contribute to their development.

However, according to Svetlana Koroleva, this body will be purely a nominal structure.

"I do not even clearly realize what it will be engaged in. The very idea is wonderful, of course, as it is to teach young people decision-making processes. But I wonder who will put up issues for discussion, how all the procedures would be held, who would monitor their implementation. Apparently, this way they are going to raise somebody - maybe, young politicians. But I think it will be no more than a project. The youth will be somehow frustrated, as well ... After all, for the project to be successful, its implementers should be active all the time, should make decisions - and these decisions should change something”, assures the expert.

"But I think this is a bogus case. Still, maybe something will really happen. Can you imagine? Bang! - and the Youth Parliament voices: "We have no youth policy, we do want the youth policy in the country!" And it would be a stroke of genius", laughs Svetlana Karaleva.

Such a youth structure exists in Russia. It is quite active there, according to Svetlana. The Russian Youth Parliament has the objectives, such as to attract young people to address social and economic challenges in Moscow and in intra-municipal entities, as well as to increase the level of political culture of young people and the level of their participation in political life.

However, says the expert, the Belarusian organization can address very different problems.

"These should be created not by Mingarvykankam [the Minsk City Executive Committee. - EuroBelarus] and the Parliament, but by the young people environ. Let's see who will create the rules for the youth parliament. The idea is, of course, wonderful - but the idea of communism was also wonderful! "Parliament", "democracy", "participation in decision-making processes", "leader" - these are beautiful combination of words, but phantom words".

She stressed that there should be elections in the Youth Parliament, to which the free access should be provided. "I do not know who will create the rules of this election. Maybe, BRSM [the state body of Belarusian Republican Youth Union. - EuroBelarus] - they say, please, for two people from each school! Then it will be "our version”, sais the expert in the youth policy field.

Besides, it is very important, from whom has come the idea of creating such a youth body.

"It's interesting, who announced the process of creating a Youth Parliament? Mingarvykankam, BRSM, or it was a youth initiative, when some young people had addressed with their idea to the Parliament and the executive committee?", puts up a question Svetlana Karaleva. "As far as all these are different activity conditions".

In this case, the Academy of Sciences came up with the initiative.

"Our Academy of Science wants to create a youth parliament - apparently, for the support of young talents in science? It’s a great idea, but what is it connected with, what are its objectives? Maybe, the Academy of Sciences has problems - and they want to protect their young scientists so that they did not leave the country? Either, because they have very low salaries? Or they want to raise the Presidential Fund to support the youth potential? The objectives must be clearly articulated, the rules of the game adopted. Otherwise it will be a profanity", affirms Svetlana Karaleva.