Sviatlana Alexievich: Our society will change when Belarus will have people with self-respect

The writer believes that neither politicians nor the state will change Belarus, but only shifts in civic conscience. The road is long – a “Red” man doesn’t go away that easily.

Sviatlana Alexievich together with Sophie Benech, the interpreter to French of her latest book “Second-hand Time: The Demise of the Red (Wo)man” was represented at the French desk at the Minsk International Book Fair that has just closed.

The talk about the difficulties with translation was interesting, but we’ll dwell on the answers Alexievich gave to the questions (asked by “EuroBelarus” Information Service as well) about our country and society in the light of the recent inner- and foreign-policy events.

Sviatlana Alexievich is sure that the Russia-Ukraine conflict is the direct result of a Red person’s way of thinking. And a Red-person remains the main hero at the post-Soviet area, at least in Russia. Desovietization didn’t happen, and though many adherents of the “Russian World” were born after the collapse of the Soviet Union they are still these “Red people”. “Look, they think in the same way, they have the same desire to give everyone who is allegedly offended them, who is more rich, and who is smarter a smack in the teeth. They are terribly offended with America, with the whole world that deceived and betrayed them and is against them”, - the writer says.

She is skeptical about the attempts of the West to resolve the conflict by means of negotiations with the “Red” man Vladimir Putin: “European politicians are trying to play with him according to the European diplomatic rules. But Putin is not even a politician – he is a KGB-man, and his thinking is a KGB one. It should be taken into regard, but everyone continues treating him as politicians, while he is a different type of person”, - Sviatlana Alexievich emphasizes.

According to her, the first thing the West should do is to arm Ukraine; otherwise Putin won’t stop. Only strong Ukraine with strong army and the economy restored with the help of the West is able to repulse the “Russian World” – unfortunately, today’s Kremlin with its 80% support of the Russian populations won’t understand other language.

Belarus’ path for the next few years “unless we are dragged in this war” is changes through the civil society, Alexievich believes. Neither the election, nor politicians, nor authorities will change the eternal Belarusan constant, which says that “a lean compromise is better than a fat lawsuit”. Where does this principle originate from? From the absence of self-respect, Alexievich believes. “We need to learn not to be afraid of stand up for ourselves – now we don’t have that. This is our main problem – too few people with dignity. Belarusan ministers are being humiliated live on TV, and they bear it. We need to raise people with self-respect – only in this way we can change the country”, - she said.

Anticipating traditional accusations about the Russian language her books are written in instead of the Belarusan language the writer recalled one more time: “I’m writing a story of a “Red” man, whose space is Empire; and the language of the Empire was Russian”. As to the future of the Belarusan language, she is sure that people will speak it and that the language is the basis of the national state and the nation itself. “Don’t worry, people will speak Belarusan. And the authorities will; the President has already started. The main thing is not to adopt laws that can be interpreted and used against the country, as it was in Ukraine”, - noted Sviatlana Alexievich, recalling about the start of psychosis, followed by the events in Crimea and in Donbas.

According to her, Sviatlana Alexievich finally returned to Belarus after quite long period of living in different European countries. It is interesting that for now Sviatlana Alexievich names Sweden as the most comfortable place for a man to live; the country, where civil society has basically become an equal partner of the state.