Belarus President Raps Jewish Governor for Not Keeping Jews ‘Under Control’
Image by Getty Images
Image by Getty Images
In a three-hour televised address on Wednesday, Lukashenko called out Semyon Shapiro, governor of the Minsk region, for not chastising Yuri Zisser, the Jewish head of the Tut.by website. Tut.by has criticized Lukashenko’s tax on those who work fewer than 183 days a year.
“I told you a year ago to take all the Jews of Belarus under control,” Lukashenko said in his speech to parliament.
At the end of his speech, Lukashenko called the Jews of his country “white boned,” meaning they do not enjoy menial work. He also praised them for their role in resisting Nazi occupation during World War II.
Lukashenko has retained authoritarian control of Belarus, the former Soviet Union state, since 1994.
The outspoken leader stirred controversy in 2007 when he said that Jews turned the city of Bobruisk into a “pigsty.” He subsequently sent a delegation to Israel.
As of 2009, some 13,300 Jews were living in Belarus in a total population of 9.5 million, according to Reuters.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and the protests on college campuses.
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
