State companies push staff to join pro-government political party

Elections to the House of Representatives and local councils will be held in Belarus at the end of February 2024. Democratic forces suggest that Belarusians boycott this event. But the closer it gets, the more strange things are happening around it.

Euroradio has received at least three signals from employees of Belarusian state enterprises that they are forced to join the pro-government party Belaya Rus under threat of dismissal. 

"What have you come up with?"

Pretending to be an employee of one of the companies, the Euroradio correspondent called the national secretariat of "Belaya Rus" and found out what to do if you did not want to join anything but were forced to.

The journalist was told on the phone that to be or not to be a party member was voluntary. The woman on the other end of the line was genuinely surprised (or pretended to be) to hear that ideologues can threaten a person with dismissal if they refuse to join the party.

"What kind of company is this? Is it in Minsk? Wow. Well, they can hint at anything, but you can tell them that you consulted with the National Secretariat. Their threats have no legal basis," the party spokeswoman said.

The Belaya Rus employee became emotional when asked what she would do if the case went to court.

"Come on, this case will never come to anything! What have you come up with? Frankly speaking, we do not have precedents of people being forced. Membership in civil society is voluntary! I think you're exaggerating, it couldn't happen".

At the end of the conversation, she assured us that no one in Belaya Rus had ever set the goal of forcing people.

But the information we have about this is slightly different. Here's what one of our sources said.

"All workers are forced to join Belaya Rus, and those who refuse are told they would be fired," said an employee of one of the state enterprises.

Maybe our journalist was talking to a representative of another Belaya Rus party? It's unlikely. 

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"There should be no uninvolved people."

After hearing the arguments of the party's official representatives, Euroradio asked political experts what exactly the citizens' reports of forced membership could be related to. 

Fridman, like Karbalevich, believes that Lukashenka's regime is gradually turning from authoritarian to totalitarian.

"The characteristic of totalitarianism is total control over society. Those niches outside the regime's pressure should fall under this pressure."

According to Fridman, the Belarusian political system is now undergoing a transformation in which parties will play a more significant role.

"In this system, more will be delegated to parts of the apparatus, and Lukashenka's persona in a particular administration may fade into the background. He will gradually withdraw, but he will retain the levers of control. And such institutions as parties and trade unions are necessary in such a situation".

The expert believes that threats of dismissal may come from certain individuals who want to prove themselves and serve in the hope of career advancement.

"There is a lot of autonomy in today's Belarusian dictatorship. Tasks are given from the top, and how these tasks are solved is the business of the executors. Another question is whether these people will really be involved in party's life. Perhaps, if they attract people with some tangible benefits, many would certainly join the party willingly. Why was the BRYU project so unsuccessful? Because it offered nothing in return, while people paid membership fees".

In his opinion, the tendency to force people to join the party could also be related to the upcoming parliamentary elections.

"Certainly, if the party candidates need to be promoted, campaigned for, it can be used. But in general, I think they will appoint the right people anyway".