Search

This paper offers a case study of the dynamic of securitisation of asylum seekers and migrants in Poland since 2015. It uses a unique case of the external actor – the Belarussian government – not merely threatening to escalate the pre-existing situation but actively constructing it by creating new migration flows and forcibly pushing asylum-seekers and migrants into the EU. By reconstructing the discourse and practice of the securitising actor and the intervention of the external actor, the paper shows that the pre-existing securitisation of asylum seekers and migrants in Poland was instrumentalised by the external actor, which led to the further development and intensification of the securitising policies and practices and their justifications. The analysis contributes to our understanding of the securitisation process in the moment of the context change as triggered by an exogenous factor – an intervention by the external actor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Politologija is the property of Vilnius University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Polish Journal of Economics / Gospodarka Narodowa is the property of SGH Warsaw School of Economics and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Looking at the recent cases of security force defection in Belarus and Venezuela, this paper develops a theory of security force "confidence" to supplement the existing literature on security force defection. Security forces' confidence (or lack thereof) in the regime, other security forces, the opposition, and their future prospects in a transition help to explain why security forces in both countries have stayed cohesive and loyal to the regime during crisis. Our research found little data to support some of the other arguments that are popularly used to explain these cases, namely external support, differences in protester tactics, and counterbalancing by the regime. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the interdependencies between democracy, privatization, and the rule of law in transitioning countries by comparing the cases of Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus. Based on the findings, the study recommends policies to follow to improve the progression of economic and political transition. By focusing on two key hypotheses--whether democracy positively drives privatization, and whether privatization positively drives the rule of law--the study combines political and economic transitions of countries as one subject. It is found that democracy negatively interferes with privatization in Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus due to corruption, insider control, hollow reforms, and institutional weakness. Consequently, the rule of law is also hindered by the same factors. Hence, the root causes of these transitional blockers must be resolved. Finally, the study explores political and economic interdependencies and suggests policies for political, economic, and institutional reforms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Technological change has brought a new dimension to the interaction between civic protest and policing in post-Soviet societies. Social media has had a revolutionary impact on protests during the last decade, mobilising citizens to resist state corruption and despotism, notably in states like Armenia, the Republic of Moldova and Belarus. Enhanced surveillance techniques and new communication channels have, at the same time, changed policing techniques and the modes of interaction between citizens and the police. This article examines the dynamics of transformed protest and policing practices, particularly of public order police, in the context of digitisation and social/political protest and change. It sheds light on the transformation of citizen-police relations and, ultimately, on the repercussions this has on the respective polities. The principal findings of the paper reveal that digital technology has been an important element in the evolution of practices of policing and police reform across the region. Yet, it is only one aspect of many in the somewhat divergent development of citizen-police relations. So far, it has produced rather negative effects instead of having been conducive to the mentality and ethos of the police. The disconnect between people and the police remains large in societies across the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sedimentary column at the Rechitsa oilfield in the Pripyat rift basin, Belarus, is dominated by an Upper Devonian synrift succession. The succession includes uppermost Frasnian and mid‐Famennian salt units which are about 1000 m and 2000 m thick respectively. Reservoir rocks consist of sandstones and carbonates in the intra‐, inter‐ and sub‐salt successions. In this paper, the geochemical analysis of 15 oil samples from different stratigraphic intervals at the Rechitsa field is used as a basis for reservoir characterisation. Geochemical studies included biomarker and stable C, N and S isotope analyses. Four genetic oil groups were identified and are referred to as Groups A to D. Oils in Group A came from upper intra‐ and inter‐salt reservoir rocks; the oils are early mature, enriched in heavy (C36+) hydrocarbons, heteroatoms, aryl‐isoprenoids and gammacerane, with low Pr/Ph = 0.6 and a sulphur isotope composition averaging 22.7‰ CDT. Oils in Group B were from sub‐salt reservoirs and are at peak maturity with Pr/Ph = 1, an increased proportion of C27 regular steranes, and a sulphur isotope composition of 8.1‰ CDT. The single oil sample in Group C was from a Proterozoic reservoir. The oil was overmature with a low content of heavy fractions, heteroatoms and steranes; its hopanes composition indicated that it was generated by the same source rock as the oils in Group B. Oils in Group D came from inter‐salt reservoir rocks and were composed of a mixture of Groups A and B oils in roughly equal proportions, as indicated by their average isotope, molecular and biomarker compositions. Observed differences in oil composition were explained in terms of contributions from at least two different source rocks together with variations in source rock maturity. Group A oils were interpreted to have been generated by Famennian carbonate‐rich source rocks containing dominantly marine and bacterial organic matter deposited in an anoxic evaporitic setting. Source rocks for Groups B and C oils were suggested to be composed of OM‐rich marine shales of Frasnian age or older. The geochemical characteristics of the Devonian oils from Rechitsa field, and the oil‐oil and oil‐ source rock correlations reported, will contribute to a better understanding of the petroleum system in the Pripyat Basin although direct oil‐ source rock correlations are not yet available. The presence of at least two source rocks for the Rechitsa oils has been suggested, respectively comprising carbonates in the inter‐salt succession and marine shales and/or carbonates in the sub‐salt succession. The main controls on oil composition in the Devonian reservoir units were the varying contributions from the different source rocks and differences in source rock thermal maturity associated with variations in burial depth and tectonics, together with the stratigraphic distribution of reservoir units which was in turn controlled by the presence of the thick Frasnian and Famennian salt units. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes the spatial politics of profit-oriented place naming (toponymic commodification) in connection with two urban megaprojects in the Belarusian capital. We focus on the Mayak Minska (the Lighthouse of Minsk) and the Minsk-Mir (the Minsk-World), by far the largest residential-commercial urban developments in post-Soviet era Minsk, and actualizations of the Belarusian regime's urban growth and multi-vector foreign policies since the mid-2000s. Theoretically, we elaborate on three toponymy-related mobilities: the traveling of neoliberal policy models, investment-attraction strategies that seek to benefit from transnational real estate financing, and the globally circulating thematic variants in toponymy. Our data covers the names of 185 residential high-rises and quarters. The findings unveil that the high art -evoking toponyms in the Mayak Minska and the sixteen geographically and thematically organized toponymic categories in the Minsk-Mir are carefully branded toponymic productions based on the logic of symbolic mimicry. Meanwhile, the toponymic commodification in the analyzed developments has been propelled forward through transnational state-business relations: through situation-specific alliances with the Russian and the UAE-based investors, and in particular through the Belarusian regime's closeknit collaborations and reciprocal promotional propaganda with the Serbia-originated BK Group and its real estate business affiliates. The documented processes of toponymic place branding have been an attempt at legitimating the prevailing Belarusian political system via its achievements in facilitating urban growth and modernization; however, they have co-occurred with the heavyhanded treatment of domestic political opponents and media critics in Belarus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article analyzes the general concept of withdrawal from human rights treaties and addresses a specific case of withdrawal from the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The article argues that the human rights regime, due to its axiological nature, the non-reciprocal character of treaty parties' relations, and the final beneficiaries´ expectations, needs lex specialis provisions on the withdrawal matters. Moreover, the results of analyses of the United Nations' bodies show that the general clause on withdrawal being requested by a non-democratic state may lead to the denial of access to international justice for indivi duals and jeopardize the entire human rights protection system. Nowadays, however, the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties does not satisfy the needs of the human rights regime. The United Nations and its mandate holders are recommended to request an advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice to clarify the compliance of the termination clause of the human rights treaties with the common values of the international society of states as a whole and the principles of the United Nations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Belarus and Ukraine were the countries most affected by the consequences of the Chornobyl nuclear power plant in 1986. A study of perinatal mortality in Belarus found a highly statistically significant increase in the 1990s in the most contaminated oblast Gomel but no increase during this period in the rest of Belarus. As a possible mechanism to interpret this increase as a late Chornobyl effect, it has been suggested that strontium-90 contained in Chornobyl fallout, incorporated during menarche, impairs the immune system of pregnant women which in turn increases perinatal mortality. In the present study, this hypothesis is tested using data from Ukraine. Methods: Annual data on perinatal mortality, in the period 1981–2006 were provided by the Ministry of Public Health of Ukraine. Trends in perinatal mortality rates in the most contaminated regions of Ukraine (Kyiv and Zhytomyr oblasts and the city of Kyiv; study region) were compared with rates in the rest of Ukraine (control region). To identify any differences in perinatal mortality trends between the study and control regions, the ratios of perinatal mortality rates in the study region to the rates in the control region were analyzed using the calculated strontium concentration as a predictor. Results: A trend analysis of perinatal mortality rates in Ukraine revealed two bell-shaped deviations from a long-term exponential trend with maxima at the beginning and end of the 1990s. The same pattern was found in the data from the study and control regions, but the deviations were almost three times higher in the study region than in the control region. An analysis of the ratios of perinatal mortality rates in the study region to the rates in the control region (odds ratios) showed an increase and decrease during the 1990s which was approximated by a lognormal density distribution. The calculated strontium concentration, when used as a predictor, also fitted the data well. Thus, the data from Ukraine confirms the results from Belarus. The analysis of the odds ratios revealed about 1000 excess perinatal deaths in the study region in the period 1990–2004. The corresponding figure for Ukraine as a whole was estimated at 3500 perinatal deaths. Conclusion: It is hypothesized that the observed increase in perinatal mortality in the 1990s may be a late effect of incorporated strontium-90 on the immune system of pregnant women. The analysis is based on a theoretical model, as no data on strontium concentrations were available; the results should therefore be interpreted with caution. An updated study for Belarus would be desirable to corroborate the results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2020, the religious factor turned out to gain importance to both protest mobilizations and to government repression in Belarus, where the initiatives of religious groups had fostered collective action in the state system that was punitive against any dissent. This happened for the first time in the country, which had been affected by the legacies of Soviet anti-religious policies. The forms of protest that churches could suggest fitted neatly into the non-democratic settings of Belarus, providing a necessary opportunity structure for otherwise forbidden mobilizations. Analyzing the attitudes of the Orthodox, Catholic, and Protestant Churches toward the events of 2020 in Belarus, this research note discusses why their social contract with the authoritarian regime was broken. We argue that the churches' stance and the role they played at a time of political turmoil confirmed their status as influential non-state actors who are capable of having their say in the rough circumstances of an authoritarian and repressive political regime. At the same time, it has also confirmed the limits of the authoritarian state to influence religious institutions and the growing opportunities for clergy and laypeople from these institutions to have a common say on important issues of moral and ethical dimensions, inspired by Christian principles and values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exposure to ionizing radiation, especially during childhood, is a well-established risk factor for thyroid cancer. Following the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident the total number of cases of thyroid cancer registered between 1991 and 2015 in males and females who were less than 18 years old exceeded 19,000 (in Belarus and Ukraine, and in the most contaminated oblasts of the Russian Federation). However, as indicated by the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation the fraction of the incidence of thyroid cancer attributable to radiation exposure among the non-evacuated residents of the contaminated regions of Belarus, Ukraine and Russia is of the order of 0.25. Apparently, the increased registration of thyroid neoplasms in the parts of these countries is a classical 'screening effect', i.e., massive diagnostic examinations of the risk-aware populations performed with modern eqipment resulting in detection of many occult neoplasms (incidentalomas). Moreover, one type of thyroid cancer previously called 'encapsulated follicular variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma' is non-invasive and instead of 'carcinoma' should now be recognized as 'noninvasive follicular thyroid neoplasm with papillary-like nuclear features.' Other potential causes of overdiagnosing of thyroid tumors include increase of the spontaneous incidence rate of this disease with age, iodine deficiency among children from Belarus, Russia and Ukraine, and/or consumption by these children of drinking water containing high levels of nitrates that likely coincides with the carcinogenic effect of radiation on the thyroid gland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014, Aleksandr Lukashenka and his regime began drifting away from Moscow's orbit of influence. Less than eight years later, Belarus has turned into a client state, serving as a bridgehead for Russia's large-scale attack on Ukraine. How could this happen? The existing literature tends to emphasize ideological and regime-type factors. Such accounts, however, are incomplete. This article presents a realist patron–client theory that incorporates the dimension of power politics to explain the causes, conduct, and consequences of Russia's Belarus policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines mobilization motives of Belarusian volunteers participating in the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian war. With an objective to provide an additional explanation as to why individuals mobilize to fight in armed conflicts outside their countries of citizenship, we demonstrate that the pursuit of political objectives in foreign fighters' home countries may function as an important – yet largely overlooked in the extant literature – mobilization incentive. The need to obtain military training and combat experience required to achieve those political goals may serve as an accompanying motive of becoming a foreign fighter. We draw our empirical data from in-depth ethnographic interviews with members of Belarusian armed formations involved in frontline operations in Ukraine. Alongside its contribution to the understudied topic of Belarusian volunteers in Ukraine, this study has broader implications for research on mobilization motives and objectives of foreign fighters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article considers in detail the choosing of a language for the liturgy and sermons in Roman Catholic parishes in Belarus. The choice of the Belarusian language is part of a deliberate nation-building policy by the Catholic Church. Moreover, a whole network of local peculiarities, historical stereotypes, and political attitudes is concealed beneath the unified cover of a preference for the use of the Belarusian language. Based on interviews with clergy and religious activists, the article shows that the Roman Catholic Church repeatedly works out compromise solutions that allow it to adapt to the pressures of the state and believers going through a process of contradictory and conflicting nation-building. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A group of species of Cytisus sect. Tubocytisus with strictly lateral inflorescences, commonly referred to as C. ratisbonensis s.l., is critically revised in Eastern Europe on the basis of morphology and comprehensive treatment of herbarium specimens and observations. Seven species and two presumed hybrids are recognised. Complete accounts are provided for each species, with synonyms, typifications, brief morphological descriptions, data on ecology and distributions, taxonomic and nomenclatural annotations. Cytisus polonicus is described as new to science, separated from C. ratisbonensis on the basis of morphology and diploid (vs. tetraploid) chromosome count. The lectotype of C. elongatus is superseded and a new lectotype is designated; this name has priority for the species previously known as C. triflorus. Six species names are newly placed to the synonymy: Chamaecytisus pineticola under Cytisus ruthenicus s. str., and Cytisus czerniaevii, C. leucotrichus, C. lindemannii, C. ponomarjovii and Chamaecytisus korabensis under Cytisus elongatus. The presumed hybrid between C. ruthenicus and C. elongatus, which was incorrectly known as C. czerniaevii, is described here as C. semerenkoanus. Cytisus lithuanicus, which has been an obscure name since its original publication, is resurrected for a newly-recognised octoploid species, which is endemic to eastern Poland, western Belarus and north-western Ukraine. The name C. cinereus is re-instated for the species previously known as C. paczoskii, and C. horniflorus is added to its synonymy; its complete distribution area is circumscribed, and its occurrence in Austria, Poland, Romania, Serbia and Slovakia is documented. Cytisus kreczetoviczii and C. elongatus are reported for the first time from Belarus, and the latter species also from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Slovenia. Cytisus borysthenicus and C. elongatus are reported as new to some territories in European Russia. Cytisus ratisbonensis s. str. is treated as absent from Eastern Europe. The neglected protologue of C. ruthenicus is discovered, and the nomenclature of all other names is verified and corrected when necessary. The original material of C. borysthenicus is re-discovered. Five further lectotypes and one neotype are designated. Distribution areas are circumscribed on the basis of numerous herbarium collections and documented observations, identified or verified by the authors. Chromosome counts published for nameless taxa from Belarus, Ukraine and Russia are assigned to the species according to their herbarium vouchers: C. borysthenicus, C. kreczetoviczii and C. lithuanicus are octoploid (2n = 100), C. ruthenicus is tetraploid (2n = 50) and octoploid (2n = 100), and C. semerenkoanus and C. elongatus are tetraploid (2n = 50). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Countries with unique developmental paths and cultural lineages display significant variations in their out-of-school education systems. In this landscape, Belarus, a vestige of the disbanded Soviet Union, illustrates a distinct out-of-school education system, profoundly shaped by both Soviet and European Union countries' influences. A meticulous examination and scholarly investigation into the Belarusian out-of-school educational framework could enable a more profound comprehension of the metamorphosis and transitions in the out-of-school education systems of nations that surfaced following the dissolution of the Soviet Union. This knowledge could subsequently render a more transparent understanding of the patterns guiding the evolution of global out-of-school educational systems. Design/Approach/Methods: This article focuses on out-of-school education in Belarus and discusses its development status and the following main characteristics: the dimensions of its historical development stage, legislative guarantee, essence and extension, training goals, and typical cases. Findings: Influenced by historical and geopolitical factors, Belarusian out-of-school education is found to embody the characteristics of both the Soviet Union and European countries. National resources are found to play an important role in the development of out-of-school education, effectively reducing the cost of education for families and shaping students' positive values. Originality/Value: This study analyzes both the history and the current situation of out-of-school education in Belarus and summarizes the country's successful experience in the development of out-of-school education. It can provide a positive point of reference for optimizing the public out-of-school education system in China and exert a positive influence on related educational reforms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eight species of the apterous genus Liposcelis (Psocoptera: Liposcelididae), L. bostrychophila Badonnel, 1931, L. corrodens (Heymons, 1909), L. decolor (Pearman, 1925), L. pearmani Lienhard, 1990, L. silvarum (Kolbe, 1888), L. formicaria (Hagen, 1865), L. aleksandrowiczi Georgiev, Ostrovsky & Lienhard, 2020 and L. sp. cf. entomophila (Enderlein, 1907), are recorded for Belarus. The latter species is recorded in Belarus for the first time. Brief information about their modern distribution, as well as features of biology and ecology is given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research note considers the impact of mobilization events on Polish–Belarusian relations. I analyze and characterize the states' relations prior to the protests in Belarus in 2020, and identify the most important problems in their relations. Poland's attitude toward the mass mobilization of Belarusian society and its reception by the Lukashenko regime is described. In the last section, I explain the impact of the Russian–Ukrainian war on Poland's relations with Belarus. The research demonstrates that the events analyzed transformed bilateral relations, generating a crisis between the states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article addresses two questions: 1) Which factors negatively impact the effectiveness of democracy assistance in Belarus? and 2) How effectively have International Non-Governmental Organizations (INGOs) in Belarus carried out democracy assistance? To do so, it draws on an original dataset about INGOs' activities in the country, which was compiled through a dozen qualitative interviews with representatives of these organizations. Methodologically, the article replicates a multivariate design of Sarah Bush, allowing it--unlike most previous research--to quantify the negative impact of understudied problems in the field of Belarusian democratic assistance, including professionalization, competition, and the interaction of actors' motives and incentives. A surprising research finding is that donors in Belarus, for a number of reasons, knowingly support "ineffective' programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of the Institute of Latvian History / Latvijas Vēstures Institūta Žurnāls is the property of University of Latvia, Institute of Latvian History and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)