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rfmcdonaldI've blogged in the past about Guido Westerwelle, Germany's out Foreign Minister. Towleroad today pointed to a news story suggesting that the Belarusian president used Westerwelle's sexual orientation to try to trigger a diplomatic incident following the suppression of free elections.
ILGA Europe went into more detail about the comments, the Gay Russia site going into more detail after Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorsky himself.
The situation for GLBT rights in Belarus isn't very good, so it's probably not surprising that Lukashenko used Westerwelle's sexual orientation--broadly unremarkable in Germany, increasingly so in Poland--to delegitmize European criticism of Belarus' totalitarianism. Alekseev quoted above is right to note that letting Lukashenko's bigotry pass for three months without any public criticism likely isn't good; certainly it seems indicative of Lukahshenko's respect for minority rights generally.
Last November in Minsk, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko suggested to German Minister of Foreign Affairs Guido Westerwelle that he should cease being gay.
Lukashenko recently acknowledged the incident, telling reporters that he dislikes "faggots" and confirming he told Westerwelle "it is necessary to live a normal life."
Russian gay activist Nikolai Alekseev expressed surprise that there was little reaction to the incident from German gay activists or the German government.
"To leave without reaction what Lukashenko said is nothing else than setting a dangerous precedent," Alekseev said. "If he can bash verbally a German minister on his sexual orientation, then why he would not do it with all Belarusian LGBT people.
"People have to understand that their absence of reaction can have some negative side effects to others."
ILGA Europe went into more detail about the comments, the Gay Russia site going into more detail after Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorsky himself.
According to the Polish Minister, the Belarusian President created a diplomatic incident when he told the openly gay German Minister that all gays should be sent to State Farms.
"When I was in Minsk together with Guido Westerwelle, we talked about minorities, and not just national minorities. Similarly (concerning sexual minorities) Alexander Lukashenko also expressed himself. I recognise that it should not be an example for members of the Civil platform" explained Radoslava Sikorsky to the News Agency Regnum on February 14.
Citing sources in the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Polish daily «Wprost» writes that during the meeting of the Polish and German foreign ministers in Minsk, President Lukashenko made a long monologue.
"He said he does not understand how a man can live with a man. It was an obvious allusion to Westerwelle, who has a partner. The German minister looked nervous, but Lukashenko went even further. In very severe form, he said he did not have anything against lesbians, but that he would be happy to send gay men to State farms" writes the newspaper.
On the eve of last December Presidential elections in Belarus, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski together with his German counterpart, Guido Westerwelle, travelled to Minsk, where they both called President Alexander Lukashenko to hold transparent and fair elections. Mr Lukashenko was re-elected on the first round with 79.67% of the votes.
The situation for GLBT rights in Belarus isn't very good, so it's probably not surprising that Lukashenko used Westerwelle's sexual orientation--broadly unremarkable in Germany, increasingly so in Poland--to delegitmize European criticism of Belarus' totalitarianism. Alekseev quoted above is right to note that letting Lukashenko's bigotry pass for three months without any public criticism likely isn't good; certainly it seems indicative of Lukahshenko's respect for minority rights generally.
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