Belarus, which I remember from 15 years ago, is a country where it was difficult to eat anything decent in smaller towns. Today, there are at least a few good places in every town.
– This is striking – says oppositionist Maksim, emphasizing that the economic situation in Belarus is clearly deteriorating, which is visible in the quality of the roads.
His comment surprises me very much, because 15 years ago Belarusian roads were better than Polish ones.
“It's the distant past,” says Paweł. — At some point, Lukashenko clearly ran out of money and a few years ago he even had to publicly admit that there is a problem with the quality of roads in Belarus.
Paweł, like Maksim, points out that the growing economic problems are accompanied by the booming restaurant and club industries. Firstly, because tourists come from Russia. Secondly, Lukashenko has finally come to terms with the fact that he must let people get richer. As a result, even in smaller cities you can drink soy latte or matcha.
Tamara argues that at some point, right after the demonstrations in 2020, there was a top-down recommendation to provide entertainment for young people.
“The idea was for them to have fun, not conspire. It's really simple.
The paradox of the situation is that in Belarus, as my interlocutors unanimously note, on the one hand, it is poorer than before, and on the other hand, there is also wealth that was not there before. For many years, Belarus was a country with very small wealth differences. Today, as Tamara states, “there is little left of Lukashenko's socialism.”
Paweł emphasizes that today in Belarus, PLN 2,000 is a really decent salary. At the same time, many goods are more expensive than in Poland. Tamara was able to buy only basic food products from her university salary. Awareness of growing poverty caused the authorities to introduce official prices or, more precisely, maximum official prices for certain categories of goods.
Igor recalls that before the current war, Vilnius was a city where every Belarusian IT specialist visited at least once a month.
— The difference is that people used to go there for shopping. And now to meet friends, because well over half of Belarusian IT specialists settled in Lithuania.
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In Poland, it is better to be Belarusian than Ukrainian
When I ask Igor what was the impulse to leave, since – unlike many of his colleagues – he did not leave the country immediately after the suppression of the Belarusian revolution, he answers clearly:
– War. Then I realized it was over. Either I leave or I will live in such Soviet crap for the rest of my life. I had hesitated before, but Russia's invasion of Ukraine was the decisive moment. I didn't hesitate a second longer. It was a day where I mainly calmed my wife down. We never thought we would experience something like this. I'll tell you honestly, as a Belarusian, I feel guilty.
Paul sees it similarly.
— We didn't send our troops there, but we took part in it anyway. I personally did not feel fear, but I was afraid that my children would have some problems in Poland. Fortunately, it quickly turned out that, apart from a few completely isolated incidents, the Poles did not hold the Belarusians responsible for what happened.
Tamara adds that it may even be better to be a Belarusian in Poland than a Ukrainian. She recalls a passenger who started talking to her in a very unpleasant way, asking if she supported Bandera. He calmed down when he heard that he was from Belarus.
— I didn't expect that being a citizen of a country allied with Russia could at some point mean that you are better received in Poland…
Maksim claims that on the day the war broke out, many Belarusian opposition politicians expected it would cause such a shock that people would take to the streets again.
“They would have left if Lukashenko had sent our troops to fight,” says Maksim. — Then there could really be a rebellion. The army itself would be the first to rebel.
I remind him that hopes for a revolt of the law enforcement structures dominated in opposition circles already during the protests after the 2020 elections, and I ask whether he is not too naive to still hope for it. Maksim replies that loyal special forces composed of professional soldiers would probably fight on Russia's side, while an ordinary army of conscripts would either disobey the order or would rebel. According to Maksim, this is why Lukashenko did not directly join the war effort.
“We are really different from the Russians”
Paweł recalls that in the weeks before the outbreak of the war and in those immediately after the start of the Russian invasion, the streets of Belarusian cities were swarming with Russian soldiers. He remembers a situation when, in a shopping center in Minsk, two Russian officers asked him where the currency exchange office was. To which Paul's wife replied in Belarusian that she was very sorry, but she did not understand Russian.
— Believe me, everyone around us was smiling. However, we are really different from the Russians.
All my other interlocutors agree with this opinion. They emphasize that in Belarus, unlike in Russia, almost no one supported the war. Igor recalls that immediately after the invasion began, the Belarusian Internet was full of videos with modifications of Alexander Lukashenko's speech, in which he justified the necessity of the Russian attack on Ukraine. Several of them presented him as a homosexual, although it would be better to use a word commonly used abroad pidarasa.
Tamara is slightly less optimistic. He emphasizes that many students in Belarus have unfortunately begun to adopt the Russian perspective.
— It is not as opposition supporters claim, that no one supports Lukashenko and Russia. It's a minority that does it, but a large enough one. I don't know if it's 30 or 40 percent of people, but there are certainly enough of them for the Belarusian regime with its pro-Russian attitude to have some support in society, says Tamara. — The worst thing is that the West has given up on Belarus. When I ask them about Polish visas, all my interlocutors say that they do not understand why Poland does not do everything to make it easier for Belarusians to come to us.
— You could give five-year Schengen visas and introduce an electronic queue, just as it is organized on the Belarusian side. It's probably good for Belarusians to go to Poland or further to the West and come back home, telling them that somewhere nearby, really close, there is a completely different world, says Paweł. — Now trips to Poland are a logistical nightmare for us. And there is a lot of Polish guilt in this. Sometimes I really prefer to fly to Poland via Dubai. Well, this is paranoia.
Read more in the book “With a view of Poland. Neighbors, Stalin's thumb, Czech debt and the KGB”.
I’m Ashley Davis as an editor, I’m committed to upholding the highest standards of integrity and accuracy in every piece we publish. My work is driven by curiosity, a passion for truth, and a belief that journalism plays a crucial role in shaping public discourse. I strive to tell stories that not only inform but also inspire action and conversation.
