Certain protests against Lukashenko are even more curious than those staged by the designer revolutionaries of Charter97. The Ukrainian group FEMEN get photogenic Ukrainian girls to pose naked as a protest against the role of women but also against "male power" of which Bat'ka is seen as but one example in neighbouring Belarus.
Ukrainian girls from Femen movement held a rally "Kick Batska out!" at the walls of the Belarusian embassy in Kiev and made an appeal to Belarusians. "We want to support the brotherly people, exhausted by the totalitarian regime of Lukashenko ruling, on the eve of the presidential elections in Belarus. Hey, Belarusians, take your chance! Dethrone Lukashenko," Femen statement says.
"Privatization of power is a concept, unacceptable by modern standards. The cult of personality is a relic of the long-deceased Soviet Union, and it's a sacred duty of all Belarusians to stop it," the statement says in the Blog of Art Group.( Telegraf )
What funds FEMEN ? Can "feminism" be promoted by posing scantily clad in Kiev by trading on the stereotypes of Ukrainian women as "for sale" to "sexpats"? Or could it be a cynical ruse to protest against such things in order to get noticed and advance careers ?
Certain protests against Lukashenko are even more curious than those staged by the designer revolutionaries of Charter97. The Ukrainian group FEMEN get photogenic Ukrainian girls to pose naked as a protest against the role of women but also against "male power" of which Bat'ka is seen as but one example in neighbouring Belarus.
I've looked into Femen and I was actually considered writing a blog post several months back but got distracted by time.
ReplyDeleteAs far as I am concerned they are a positive force. They were set up as independant collectives of young educated Ukrainian women, students largely, who rejected the reputation Ukraine (along with the wider post soviet eastern europe) has/had with being the brothel of Europe, including things like mail order brides, child sex tourism, sex trafficking and the like. They seek to gain attention through provocative stunts like going around topless but there aims are 100% legitimate.
As to what they were doing vis a vis Belarus, hell if I know or care. But I am inclined to think that overall Anything that stops the plunder of poor eastern european women and the associating drug abuse, family breakdown, alcoholism, HIV, suicide and despair is surely a good thing.