Belarus: Lukashenko goes after Eurovision/Junior Eurovision stars

The Lukashenko regime has been in the news recently for its rapid drift towards authoritarianism.  Belarusian athlete, Kristina Tsimanuskaya was the center of an international scandal during the Tokyo summer Olympics.  The Belarus delegation tried to deport her by force to her country after she criticized the Belarus coaching staff.  Furthermore, Tsimanuskaya stated that she was in danger if she returned to Belarus.

Sadly, the ongoing political situation in Belarus is also affecting musicians in this country.  There is a “blacklist” of athletes, artists and personalities who are labeled as ‘enemies’ of the Lukashenko regime.  This blacklist includes former Eurovision and Junior Eurovision representatives.  In addition, Evgeniy Perlin who host the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2018 in Minsk is targeted in this list.

The disturbing list of public enemies of the regime include among others:

Volha Satsiuk (4th place JESC 2003)

Ksenia Sitnik (1st place JESC 2005)

Alexey Zhigalkovich (1st place JESC 2007)

Angelica Agurbash (13th place in the ESC 2005 Semifinals)

Polina Smolova (22nd place in the ESC Semifinals 2006)

Dmitriy Koldun (6th place ESC 2007)

Litesound (16th place in the 2nd Semifinal ESC 2012)

Uzari (12th place in the 1st Semifinal ESC 2015)

Naviband (17th place ESC 2017)

VAL (selected representatives in the canceled ESC 2020)

We will continue reporting about any updates on these concerning news developments.