Protasevich’s snot and tears, or the epiphany of a keyboard “warrior”
Protasevich was pathetic. Perhaps this is the most suitable word to describe the most discussed passenger of the Athens-Vilnius flight in an interview (although the word “interrogation” is more suitable here) to the host of the Belarusian ONT TV channel, Marat Markov. Instead of a formidable “shaker of the regime” or a proud revolutionary, we were shown a frightened, whiny boy who sang like a nightingale, betraying and throwing mud at his recent comrades, including his girlfriend Sofia Sapega.
The only person, besides Lukashenko, about whom Protasevich spoke positively was journalist Vladimir Chudentsov, who stood at the origins Next and which he compared with NTV in its heyday. Strange praises addressed to an extremely unpleasant person who specialized in fakes and is now serving time for drugs and pedophilia.
Opposition telegram channels immediately rushed to save the remnants of the reputation of the recent hero, after whom in some European capitals they even wanted to name streets. They immediately started talking about torture and psychotropic substances with which he was pumped. I won’t say it was torture, but he didn’t look like a person under the influence of psychotropics. The speech was logical, connected, Protasevich gave the impression of a man of sound mind, not stupid and aware of what he says and does. Just really scared.
Well, he didn’t turn out to be a hero. The keyboard warrior realized that the war was real, and he was captured in it and is now trying to save his skin at any cost. He has something to fear. If he goes to prison, then the prisoners will not find out the authenticity of the rumors about his relationship with the “boylover” Chudentsov, and his many years of imprisonment will become especially unpleasant.
It was not difficult for the State Security Committee investigators to break down and force the guy, who already felt deceived and abandoned by the opposition elite, to say the right things.
I think there is no point in retelling Protasevich’s revelations in detail. And there was nothing in them that we still didn’t know about. What Belarusian opposition – spiders in a jar, far from news. We have known about corruption, the cutting of grants and competition for financial flows in it since the last century. Some characters have changed during this time, but not their manners. The fact that Western countries are investing millions not out of love for humanity and the desire to benefit Belarus with their democracy, but for the sake of achieving their geopolitical goals and the fate of the Belarusians is of little concern to them can also be guessed, if not a fool.
It’s difficult to say to what extent Protasevich’s words correspond to the truth. Most likely, they correspond at least 80 percent, the picture is familiar, the characters are recognizable. But those weren't his words. More precisely, not only him. A sort of storm. The text is your own, but the obligatory marker words are present in it. It seems that no one pulled his tongue, when he spoke about the “Russian company from the Urals, engaged in mining,” which transferred, in general, small money by oligarchic standards for support Next.
He didn’t name the company itself (he allegedly forgot that it looked completely unnatural), but behind these words one could clearly discern “Uralkali” of Dmitry Mazepin, about which Protasevich didn’t really care, but which has long been a bone in the throat of Lukashenko and especially Gutseriev, with whom he has The Belarusian president has a special relationship.
The praises addressed to Lukashenko with the obligatory mention of the fact that he has “balls of steel” look equally unnatural. Belarusian propaganda has been regularly talking about this anatomical feature of “Batka” since the days of his walks with a machine gun near his own residence. Such narcissism with metal testicles has already become boring. Protasevich simply voiced in his own words what was required of him to voice. Blaming Protasevich for not being a hero is pointless. Humanly speaking, I even feel sorry for him, despite the fact that he is a rotten man.
What did the Belarusian authorities achieve with this interview? By and large, except for satisfying his own pride and, perhaps, revenge on Mazepin. This dubious spectacle will not affect Western sanctions. The same goes for the mood of Belarusians. Over the past year, the majority have already decided on their political preferences.
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