Anti-presidential materials continue to leak

The processes of ferment and interdepartmental conflicts continue within the state bureaucracy, leading to leakages and mismatches in the informational policy.

During this week, in the media appeared two leaks that discredit the Executive Office of the President Lukashenka.

Comment

The processes of ferment and interdepartmental conflicts continue within the state bureaucracy, leading to leakages and mismatches in the informational policy.

On November 2^nd, an independent internet-page “Belarusian Partisan” published a copy of an advertising pamphlet of the Executive Office of the President of the Republic of Belarus, which presented the services for foreign delegations of the Protocol Department of the Palace of the Republic in Minsk. In this Department they employ young women from model agencies, participants and finalists of beauty contests, and this pamphlet is made up in a way, which may cause ambiguous understanding of the character of provided services. As a result of this publication, the head of the Department had to provide the media with justifying comments.

On November 3^rd, the official governmental informational agency “BelTA” cited the words of Deputy Minister of Sport and Tourism of Belarus Mr.Shulga, who mentioned that one German tourist spent about 450 thousand euro during 3 days in the National Nature Reserve “Belovezhskaya Pushcha”. The Deputy Minister clarified that this tourist was hunting the European bison. This information was spread by other official and independent media, including FM radio stations. After some time, this message was taken off the web-page of “BelTA”.

Both Protocol Department and the National Nature Reserve “Belovezhskaya Pushcha” are under subordination to the Executive Office of the President. The character of these two messages gives occasion to think that it was a planned action to blacken the reputation of the Executive Office, which sells to foreigners the national riches: Belarusian beauties and the European bison, protected by the Red Book.

There was no official reaction from the heads of the Executive Office as well as no other denunciations from the authors of these leaks.