"You cannot milk cows remotely" - Lukashenko’s reason not to impose quarantine in Belarus
Experts believe that the situation with the coronavirus epidemic in Belarus is at the point where an urgent decision is needed. The number of cases began to increase by 30-40% per day.
The population of Belarus begins to complain against the fact that the country's president, Alexander Lukashenko, does not introduce any quarantine measures in the country, but, on the contrary, practically denies the existence of an epidemic. Residents made a petition calling on the authorities to quarantine. It has already been signed by more than 150 thousand people.
Moreover, the son of a resident of Polotsk, who died of pneumonia, Lidia Matveeva, who was diagnosed with a coronavirus, wrote a statement to the police demanding to institute criminal proceedings against the president, Alexander Lukashenko.
Economist Aleksnadr Rogers believes that it is too early to talk about the alarming situation, Lukashenko still has time to maneuver.
Here the situation is not simple: Alexander Grigorievich is a stubborn man, if he has decided something, he will not give up. So I'm not sure that he will make another decision. But, on the other hand, it’s also impossible to say exactly how much sick, the tests in Belarus are few, the influx of patients, a certain critical mass is also not observed, and the statement to the police is, excuse me, a cry of the soul, one can only sympathize with a person, - says Rogers.
The expert noted that, according to rumors, an epidemic has been going on in Belarus for a long time, and the death toll is increasing, they just make doctors hide everything, but it is not possible to verify the plausibility of such statements.
Alexander Lukashenko himself laughs at the quarantine question, saying that you can enter quarantine in 24 hours, but "who will feed us" or that "cows on a remote place do not milk."
Political analyst Dmitry Rodionov believes that he has no other option.
Lukashenko will pull to the very last. It’s hard to say where the hell is, when he realizes that you can’t do without quarantine. He may try to hide it, somehow manipulate data, but corpses are corpses. You can’t hide them, ”says Rodionov. - This is a double-edged sword: Russia can survive the quarantine - we have reserves, but Belarus has a small economy, and the country is not rich. You look at America, there over a month already ten million have lost their jobs. And in Belarus, and 100 thousand unemployed enough to start a crisis.
Rodionov believes that the key to this pandemic is the very free manipulation of the number of deaths. On the one hand, it is possible to call all victims of the coronavirus its victims, on the other hand, the death toll from the virus can be underestimated in the same way, transferring death to other causes. Whether Lukashenko adheres to one of these strategies, time will tell.
Dmitry Rodionov noted that elections will be held in Belarus this August, so the absence of economic disruptions is one of the priorities of domestic Belarusian policy.
It cannot be said when Lukashenko will change his attitude towards the epidemic and whether it will, however, most likely, in April it will become clear how the epidemic will go across Belarus. So, Russia should also be ready for such a development of events, since Belarus, despite the specific relations in the field of hydrocarbons, remains our main ally and brotherly country, ”he added.
The publicist Anatoly Wasserman, on the contrary, believes that it makes no sense to cheat with numbers, since the result will be exactly the opposite.
- To hide such things is more expensive. When they try to hide something, they distort the picture for themselves, which means they do not have the information necessary for making decisions. By the way, historians therefore trust the documents of internal reporting more. I note that many quarantine measures in Belarus have been taken for a long time. Borders are controlled by neighbors, even with Russia, transit flows have been supervised from the very beginning, much is already being done.
Also, according to him, there is no consensus among epidemiologists on which system to combat this infection is the best. So Belarusians could experiment.
The coronavirus pandemic is a punishment from above for an irresponsible attitude towards the environment. This opinion is shared by President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko.
“I once said that he (God. - Ed.) Saw that we are behaving irresponsible towards ecology, a lifestyle that does not meet our criteria at all, and hit us (with a coronavirus pandemic) . - Ed), ”BelTA quotes him on April 25.
Such a statement was made by Lukashenko during the republican subbotnik on the territory of the Pripyatsky National Park. Previously, the Belarusian leader regularly visits the areas affected by the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, which occurred on April 26, 1986.
Earlier, in April, Lukashenko condemned the closure of churches in different countries against the backdrop of a pandemic and refused to close state borders, calling this measure "utter stupidity."
In his opinion, those infected with coronavirus do not die from infection, but from the chronic diseases that they had.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recommended that the Belarusian leader introduce quarantine and curfew in the country. However, in response to criticism about the inadequacy of measures to combat the pandemic, Lukashenko said that critics do not know how the country lives.
According to Worldometer data, on April 25, in Belarus, coronavirus was detected in over 8.7 thousand people, 63 patients died.
The President of Belarus says he sees zero benefits from imposing quarantine in the country
Quarantine measures introduced in Russia and other countries due to the spread of coronavirus pandemix will not give any positive result. Such an opinion was expressed by President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko on Sunday, April 26.
“They tried to isolate the virus in Russia. Did it worked? No. And we are the same as in Russia. You cannot isolate us, ”Lukashenka said during a live broadcast at the Belarus 1 television channel.
According to Lukashenko, under quarantine, "someone in isolation is sick, they are pulled out of there, treated while everyone is sitting in these apartments."
“Now they have opened the gate - people have come out. And the people infected by this virus is going up again. And the second wave of incidence will turn out. The first one didn’t go away, and the second wave will cover them wither, ”the Belarusian leader believes.
Therefore, according to him, he “decided to go his own way,” reports TASS.
The number of people infected with coronavirus in Belarus over the past 24 hours has increased by 873 people and reached 10,463; 72 patients died in the country. Due to coronavirus, no quarantine has been introduced in Belarus; preparations are underway for the Victory Day parade. From April 20, the schools have been opened
The World Health Organization (WHO) recommended quarantine and curfews. However, President Alexander Lukashenko refused to close state borders, calling this measure utter stupidity, and also condemned some other preventive measures, including the closure of churches.
“I call this coronavirus nothing else but an psychosis and I will never refuse it,” says Alexander Lukashenko.
The authorities of Belarus reacted to a dangerous disease in a different way. School children continue to attend classes, mass events are held, including a football championship, army exercises. Minsk left the borders open (but all neighbors closed them). Izvestia understood the causes and possible consequences of such inaction.
Vodka as a cure against the virus
The number of people infected with coronavirus in Belarus on April 23 reached 11,289. According to the Ministry of Health, 1,740 patients recovered and there are 79 deaths.
In neighboring countries, the situation is similar. In Ukraine, the virus has killed 220 people. Kiev has taken unprecedented security measures. Closed metro, shopping centers, restaurants, canceled classes in schools, intercity and international transport links. Limited urban traffic.
In Belarus, on the other hand, the situation regarding the pandemic is more relaxed.
- Despite some criticism, I call this coronavirus only psychosis and I will never refuse it, because I have already experienced many such situations with you, and we know what this led to. I am absolutely convinced that this is another psychosis that will be beneficial for someone and harm someone, says Alexander Lukashenko.
According to the Belarusian leader, one should not panic, but "just work."
- Especially now, in the countryside, it's nice to watch on TV: people work on a tractor, no one talks about the virus. The tractor will cure everyone. The field heals everyone, ”he says.
For prevention, Lukashenko suggested washing his hands more often, having breakfast, lunch and dinner on time, as well as going to the bathhouse and drinking vodka.
- I’m a non-drinker, but recently I’m jokingly saying that vodka should not only wash your hands, but, probably, on the day of 40-50 g in terms of pure alcohol - poison this virus. But not at work, the president advises.
There is no need to do anything
Belarusian students continue to attend classes. They were not transferred to distance learning, nor were they announced early vacations.
- Old people suffer, not children. Why do we now declare a holiday so that these children go to grandparents. Old people under 80 years old, over 80 years old: “Ah! Grandson arrived. ” We will kill the elderly! Therefore, there is nothing to do, says Lukashenko.
University students continue to study, including at BSU, where infected people were identified. Only the Belarusian National Technical University (BNTU) declared quarantine for two weeks, but the pause ended on March 15.
Students at the same time refuse to attend lectures.
- "In my group of 30 people, only 4–5 go to classes” says a student at the Minsk Linguistic University.
Mass events are held. The Belarus Football Championship remains the only championship in Europe. Moreover, matches are held with the audience. On March 20, 3.6 thousand people watched the game between the Brest Dynamo and Smolevichs, and one thousand spectators watched the battle of the Minsk Dynamo and RUH.
On March 23, the active phase of a comprehensive verification of the combat and mobilization readiness of the Armed Forces began. 6 thousand people took part in the maneuvers, including one thousand from the reserve. As part of the audit, border security is being tested, anti-tank systems, artillery, MLRS, and aviation are used. Defense Ministry spokesman Vladimir Makarov says the exercise program has not changed because of the coronavirus.
Belarus left the borders open. The irony, however, is that all neighbors closed the borders in turn. First, Ukraine took restrictive measures, then Lithuania, Latvia and Poland, and the last - on the night of March 17-18, Russia. Moscow explained that Minsk is ignoring the requirements of the World Health Organization (WHO).
Minsk Airport is not as active as before. Canceled 70 flights to Europe and Asia. According to journalists, a third of Belavia's planes are on the ground.
Passengers, however, are seen at the carefree airport staff. - They don’t check the temperature, they don’t ask what country they flew through, they don’t take any tests for coronavirus, there are no thermal scanners. Nothing at all. You take a suitcase and you leave, ”one of the passengers says.
The officials do not greatly reassure the citizens of the country. The situation is getting difficult by economic difficulties. In the third week of March alone, the national currency fell 9.35% against the dollar (22 kopecks).
There was a stir in the shops.
- Selling everything that is cheaper. And not only from the category of "necessary", but also from the category "let it be." Great demand for buckwheat, rice, pasta, vegetable oil. Take tea, coffee for future use. “Hapun” has been going on for several days, we only have time to lay out the goods on the shelves, the manager of one of the retail chains told reporters.
Queues are also noticed in household appliance stores.
- The demand for TVs, refrigerators and other large household appliances has grown, as is usually the case with our devaluations. Those who need it anyway buy it, but they put off the purchase. Buyers are well aware that then it will be more expensive, ”says the seller.
Several dozen petitions appeared on the Internet demanding quarantine. One of them collected 16 thousand signatures.
Experts say that the introduction of quarantine is has many negative psychological effects.
- Lukashenko has long been creating the image of Belarus as an island of stability and security. To a certain extent, he became a hostage to this picture of the world, ”political scientist Valery Karbalevich says to Izvestia.
Belarusian analyst Dmitry Bolkunets explains the behavior of Minsk with a set of political and economic reasons. According to him, companies and educational institutions are not ready for the transition to a remote mode of operation.
- For this, there is no experience, no funds, no online colaboration platforms. The quarantine will lead to a halt in the industry, and this is an additional cost, the source said.
According to expert estimates, the introduction of quarantine, together with a collapse in world markets, will lead to a reduction in republican exports by 30–40%, and a drop in GDP by 20%.
- This year the presidential elections in Belarus will be held. It is clear that the deterioration of the economic crisis will anger the electorate. Therefore, it was decided to pretend that there is no infection, as the Bolkunets emphasizes.
Chinese authorities have announced the end of the coronavirus epidemic in the country. This was announced at a briefing by the official representative of the State Committee for Health of the People's Republic of China, Mi Feng.
Feng said that as of March 28, the number of confirmed cases of infection throughout the country was less than three thousand. Thus, the spread of infection in China was stopped.
According to the latest data from Johns Hopkins University (USA), the total number of cases of coronavirus infection in China is just over 82 thousand. 75.5 thousand people recovered, 3.3 thousand died. Now in the first place in the world in the number of cases of coronavirus - the United States. Almost 125 thousand infected were detected there.
On March 22, it was reported that several tens of thousands of coronavirus infected in China were not included in official statistics due to the absence of symptoms. This was written by the local press with reference to closed government data. Thus, according to reporters, the number of cases in China can reach 125 thousand.
In the rest in the world, the number of infections are growing day by day, reaching over 700.000 cases with 32,144 deaths. Out of those infected, 25,423 are in either serious or critical condition. Italy has been the worst country affected, with 10,023 confirmed deaths followed by Spain, with 6,528 cases.
According to World Health Organization, as of today, March 25, 2020 there are over 435,353 confirmed cases of Coronavirus infections, almost 20.000 deaths and there are about 111,870 people that have recovered. Out of those people who are infected, about 290,624 (96%) are in mild condition and 13,241 (4%) are in serious or critical condition. The most affected countries are now Italy and Spain, with over 69.176 cases and 47,610 accordingly.
As the number of cases more than doubled recently, many countries are now trying to prevent or at least slow the spread of the virus using self-isolation, social distancing and in some cases, introducing country-wide quarantines.
But what happens when your loved one is diagnosed with Coronavirus? You cannot get close to them, as you risk getting the infection and you can also infect others. So in this said moments, people are sharing pictures online of the people they care the most.
Some of the pictures, like touching the hands through the window or sitting next door with the loved one can have an emotional impact. And we should applaud their efforts because it keeps themselves and others safe during this difficult time.
This is how a couple in their 90's end up spending their time together during the quarantine, beucase of a femure fracture
Children made a surpise visit to her mom to say happy birthday, where she could not hold her tears
A father with his son are talking over the phone every day during the Covid-19 lockdown
In nursing homes, visitors are not allowed during the pandemic period. So, in order not to upset the grandma, they made a surprise visit
Another example when you are not allowed to visiti the Nursing Home, but that doesn't stop you. Try not to hide your tears, as the picture bellow is worth a million of words.
Couple meet only for a few minutes during the first line of defense against Coronavirus
This is how grandparents meet their grandson for the first time during the coronavirus pandemic
Another example of meeting the grandson for the first time. Breathtaking
This is how a birthday surprise looks like during quarantine
Nothing can stope this old couple from supporting each over, especially during this difficult period for all of us.
Granddaughter tells her Grandfather that she got engaged. Emotional scene
Reported by Bemorepanda Team