Over the past two years, Hrodna Telegram channels close to law enforcement have been publishing «repentance» videos featuring detainees with swastika tattoos and other similar symbols, or the sharing of such images. A source close to law enforcement believes that these people have become victims of the general fight against dissent. A human rights activist and a former law enforcement officer believe that this is a way to discredit those who disagree with the regime. A source close to those detained for Nazism explains: they drew swastikas and gave Nazi salutes «for fun». Hrodna.life investigated the movement in Hrodna.
In mid-2022, when «repentance» videos were widely practiced, videos with detainees bearing Nazi symbols on their tattoos began to appear. This was on the eve of Victory Day on May 9. A man apologized to WWII veterans and people who suffered from the actions of the fascists. He was wearing a shirt with suspenders — an element of skinhead clothing. Some of them do adhere to nationalist views. Before this detention, a medic from Hrodna had already been tried administratively for promoting Nazism, artist Ales Pushkin was accused of it, and a stripper was found with a book by Adolf Hitler.
Since then, the Telegram channel «Pravo Imeyut» (specialized on human rights violations in Hrodna region) has recorded more than 25 detentions and trials for Nazi symbols on the body or on social media. One of the detainees said that he was a football fan and at that time got tattoos with Nazi symbols. On his neck is an eagle with a swastika. Another «fan» has a kolovrat and the inscription «Slav» on his stomach.
A resident of Lida got his tattoos in prison. In 2023, a guy with a tattoo of the «Black Sun» was detained in Hrodna. He said that he got the tattoo thinking it was an ancient Slavic amulet.
As a rule, for such actions, they are tried under Art. 19.10 of the Administrative Code — people are given a fine of several basic units or several days of arrest. Grodno resident Pavel Bich, who was detained twice for a tattoo, was tried under a criminal article for the third time. Under Art. 341−1 of the Criminal Code «Propaganda or public demonstration, production, distribution of Nazi symbols or paraphernalia», he was sentenced to two years in prison.
Art. 341−1 of the Criminal Code, which established criminal liability for repeated (within a year after the imposition of two administrative penalties for such acts) propaganda or public demonstration, production, distribution of Nazi symbols or paraphernalia, appeared with the amendment of the Criminal Code at the end of 2021.
An Orthodox priest from Grodno, Nikolai Hayduk, was fined under Part 1 of Art. 19.10 of the Administrative Code, although he explained that he posted Nazi symbols as part of a historical photograph in order to criticize Nazi views.
In the summer of 2024, two guys were detained who were sending Nazi symbols to each other in a closed group.
During detention, as a rule, videos are filmed and photographs are taken. For this, they are literally stripped to their underwear. Detainees apologize to veterans of the Great Patriotic War and promise to remove the tattoos. At the same time, law enforcement officers note that the detainees are football fans and/or have been previously convicted.
Some of the arrests were made on the tip of concerned citizens. They expressed similar concerns back in 2016 — and now they have been listened to.
In one of the recently detained, a Hrodna.life source recognized his acquaintance. He did not notice any Nazi views in him. «I was stunned when I read the news. Damn, for Nazi views… The guy is just a guy. He studied poorly. After the 10th grade, he left to apply — he didn’t go to 11th grade. He rarely went to classes. An ordinary guy who studies for 3−4, maximum 5. Doesn’t care about anything. Kind of a dude. I won’t say anything about Nazism».
«Why did we draw this then? We drew a 'swastun' (swastika — Hrodna.life) for a friend for fun», — said one of the people familiar with the detainees. Photos with inscriptions with Nazi symbols and Nazi salutes were found on his phone. They did not draw it on banners or streets, the source notes.
Nazi tattoos are often attributed to football fans. A Hrodna.life source from the environment explains: the fan movement has traditionally adhered to right-wing ideology since the 90s. «Then, very often in the football fan sector there were those who opposed „n*ggers“ „h*chies“ [blacks and Caucasians — Hrodna.life clarification], emigrants — these were skinheads. Since then, I suppose, it went: since there are skinheads in the movement, it means they are right-wing. And skinheads gave Nazi salutes then, and 14 88 [code slogan of neo-Nazis — Hrodna.life]. It took root in the movement».
In Belarus, almost all fan movements were right-wing, the source believes. Of the «left» — only a few groups. There were fights, and they fought not because someone was for or against migrants, but simply: since they are different, they are enemies.
— Yes, we gave Nazi salutes in the 2010s. It was cool, fashionable, when all these movements came from Europe. And in the sector, they shouted the song «Zina Zoya». Especially if left-wing movements came to us, we always gave Nazi salutes. Showing them that we are right, and they are left. Just a right-wing movement — to give a Nazi salute. We didn’t give a Nazi salute directly, we raised our hand like fans. It was cool. Honestly, hell knows [why], — explains the source.
Since those times, the 2000s — many still have tattoos like ACAB (abbreviation for «All Cops Are Bastards») and kolovrats.
The man clarifies that he did not like Hitler. He does not remember «intellectual conversations» about attitudes towards migrants at the movement level. Some people in the movement really «hated h*chies themselves», but did not impose their views on others. The source himself has a «bad» attitude towards migrants who come to Europe for benefits.
There is no division in fan circles now, the source explains. They moved away from the «right» theme closer to 2015, because there were no more «left» ones — the teams they supported were gone. The fights ended because the police «took everything under control». The security forces became especially interested in the fans after the Maidan in Ukraine in 2014, the man believes. The «left» and «right», who for decades staged fights and caught each other in the yards, can now be friends. And during the 2020 protests, the fan movements united altogether.
— Why are they trying to ascribe it now, although we [one of the movements — Hrodna.life] do not identify ourselves with either the right or the left? All this is done in order to show that this is a Nazi, he adheres to such an ideology, it acts like a red rag to an ordinary man in the street, — the source said. — All fans are a priori considered neo-Nazis: «look, they also worship Hitler.» In fact, there is no Nazism as such in Belarus. This was mostly cultivated by the state. Fans are always a problem for the state, because they are organized people. These are people who can self-organize in minutes, hours. These are uncontrolled groups that, if there is a number, have power, — the man explains.
Both the Nazis and the fans were supervised by one department of the GUBOPiK (political police in Belarus), a representative of BELPOL told Hrodna.life (BelPol is a team of former law enforcement officers who are now in opposition to Belarusian regime). They took the same measures against them, using different articles of the Administrative Code. They were kept under control and tried to «insert agents» into the movements.
— These people are feared because they are, as a rule, men. Mostly physically developed, strong, engaged in various sports. They are rebellious people, they are not afraid of security officials, they despise them, they can unite and pose a certain danger. This is not liked in Belarus — any associations, — said a representative of BELPOL.
The security forces fell under Russian propaganda after 2014, he believes. And the real reason for the working out was not the rehabilitation of Nazism, but the potential opportunity to go against the state. All groups — fans, Nazis, anarchists — decided to take under strict control. «And how to explain to the citizens of Belarus that all football fans have suddenly become bad people? It is most convenient to put it under the propaganda of Nazism, because we suffered 80 years ago from this. Our Belarusians will understand this. And all these symbols… It turned out that half of the fans have these symbols».
The BELPOL representative says that he has not met «real» Nazis who would be aggressively disposed towards any groups of people. He does not rule out that they may be — but in Belarus there are not as many of them as there were in Russia. If it was necessary to detain someone with Nazi symbols personally, then, as a rule, for other crimes. For example, theft.
In Belarus, the subculture of the Nazis was formed around the 70s of the XX century. In the 90s, organizations with a more or less structured ideology appeared, Andrei Kazakevich, Doctor of Political Sciences (PhD), Director of the Political Sphere Institute, told Hrodna.life.
Then, in the 90s, studies of the Nazi movement were carried out in Belarus. Andrei Kazakevich participated in the study as an interviewer. It showed that young people are attracted primarily by stylistics: clothes, music, posters, symbols.
— The formation of regional variations of Nazism usually proceeds with borrowing style and symbolism, basic ideas. And then they are diluted with local elements. In the Belarusian environment, there are two such parts in this subculture: Russian, Pan-Russian Nazism, Slavic — those who associate themselves with the Russian community, and some part is trying to include elements of Belarusian culture and Belarusian history in their critical system of views. And, in fact, this can be considered a local version of Nazism. Although this is very vague, because there is no movement with a clear ideology.
As a rule, there are two types of «Nazis», Kazakevich reveals. The first is an intellectual with a sense of alienation, dissatisfied with the world and considering himself a nonconformist. He is not ready to accept the current political and cultural reality — where liberalism and multiculturalism dominate. More often this happens during student years. He is less visible, less likely to get aggressive tattoos. He reads books more often. The second is a frustrated young man, often a fan or a bully, a «gopnik». As a rule, this is a «male» subculture, where people with low incomes and sources of frustration go — unemployment, competition at work with other nationalities.
The police are working out rather the second type, since it is associated with open and forceful manifestations.
Political scientists and former security officials, in a conversation with Hrodna.life, recall 2014 as the starting point after which right-wing movements and football fans became interested in Belarus. Experts also note that there are no statistics on detentions. Only what is visible is that these detentions began to be covered more actively.
«Extremists», «Nazis», especially in the fan environment, after 2014 became the «target group» of the 3rd department of the GUBOPiK, said Andrei Kazakevich. People with right-wing radical views began to be «worked out». At the same time, for example, there have always been fewer claims against Russian fascists than against Belarusian ones. Now it is difficult to say whether they are given more or less attention. There are no real statistics, and focusing on the number of publications is not the most reliable way.
— What is the danger of such segregation according to some kind of human activity? How did they start to press people for drugs, football fans, people with any symbols, tattoos. Certain units were fixated on this, specialized, and there they developed these tough approaches to people. Then these harsh measures, which were applied to narrow groups, turned into suppression in the political sphere of everyone, — said a representative of BELPOL.
A source close to the security forces of the editorial office even believes that they began to be engaged in within the framework of the «fight against the white-red-white flag». They say that the district police officer is given the task to review likes and subscriptions on social networks. Along with materials recognized as extremist, he also draws attention to the swastika, etc. Indeed, in the databases of court decisions, there are cases when they were judged simultaneously for «extremist» subscriptions and for promoting Nazism. The same, the source believes, is with tattoos: they peer in to find white-red-white, and at the same time they are detained for a swastika. At the same time, the source calls the Nazis a victim of the general struggle against dissent.
Previously, he claims, they were not specifically targeted and were not taken seriously. They were caught, fined, and made to promise to remove the tattoo. The source recalls a strange booklet-memo from his work with Nazi symbols, which existed until 2020. There was a «mess»: symbols of the Ku Klux Klan, Western European fascists. He suggests that someone in the Central Office simply googled pictures on the topic without delving into it.
A group of human rights activists believes that the detention of Nazis also serves to discredit people with democratic views.
— I suspect that Nazi symbols are just an attribute used to artificially mix two different groups and views that do not intersect in any way. Law enforcement officers deliberately put people with tattoos of the national emblem of Ukraine, Pahonia, recognized as a historical and cultural value of the Belarusian people, and the swastika, which is historically a symbol of Nazism, in the same line, — says Vika Rudenkova, a lawyer at the Viasna Human Rights Center.
Human rights activists cover some detentions of «Nazis» because information about this comes from «repentance» videos. Lawyer Vika Rudenkova notes that the very fact of such videos is an illegal practice that violates the principle of humanity and freedom from torture and inhuman treatment.
International human rights standards do provide for a ban and allow for liability for Nazi symbols. Therefore, prosecution within the framework of legislation and in accordance with human rights standards may be acceptable and is practiced in various democratic countries. Vika refers to Article 20 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
Counteracting the propaganda of Nazism is an obligation of states, Vika notes. This is not only about proportionate punishment, but also about education, monitoring, and cooperation with other countries. The current fight against extremism is criticized by Belarusian human rights defenders and international actors. On the contrary, they lead to the radicalization of society.
In general, the ban on the demonstration of fascist symbols in Belarus is relevant and logical, believes Belarusian political analyst Vadim Mozheiko. Countries that have suffered less from it — for example, the United States — can afford more freedom in this regard.
In most countries, the far-right environment is seen as a potential source of problems and threats. Work is underway with it, notes Andrei Kazakevich.
A BELPOL representative proposes asking the public before adding symbols to the lists of extremist and prohibited ones. He is sure that no one would consider the white-red-white flag Nazi.
In the detentions, the ideological and everyday moments coincided, Vadim Mozheiko believes. He explains the «demand» for the fight against Nazism by the confrontation between Belarus and the West.
— The Belarusian regime is trying to take sides in the fight against Nazism. World War II plays an increasingly important role in ideology. After 2020, this became even more active — the desire to present the whole world around us to the west as Nazis, and we are fighting the Nazis. Hence the themes about the newly unearthed genocide of the Belarusian people, and accusations about the Nazi flag. In general, the desire to make yourself as white as possible, and your opponents — as black as possible. In reality, it is clear that there is no active Nazism in Belarus. For me, stories about gangs of skinheads are somewhere in Russia, in the 90s.
Therefore, the authorities, according to Vadim, are constructing reality, and not working with real problems. And the «practical» part is that law enforcement officers can thus perform easy work, and not solve real crimes.
What the security forces present as Nazism is a mixture of neo-Nazism, neo-paganism, Slavism, Pan-Slavism, Vadim Mozheiko believes. Pan-Slavism is supported from Russia. «Here it is, a very real problem. Those who say that the Ukrainian people do not exist, and if they do, they must be killed or re-educated — these are the most real Nazis nearby». But there is no political will and strength to fight this Nazism.
Vadim Mozheiko believes that the equal sign between Nazis and football fans, Nazis and opponents of the regime is put because it is convenient — «to smear everyone with black paint». Football fans, anarchists — groups that the authorities feared. And for good reason: during the 2020 protests, it was they who fiercely resisted, became an organized force and were ready to use it, Vadim recalls.
In today’s Belarus, those whom the authorities consider Nazis are unlikely to become dangerous, according to a source close to the security forces. He describes the group as ordinary teenagers who will not be allowed to self-organize. And they have no one to fight with, he believes. There are not so many migrants or ethnic groups in Belarus that could become objects of their hatred. This is more typical for Russia or Western Europe.
The movement itself is now heterogeneous and amorphous, Andrei Kazakevich believes. The whole subculture is based more on style than on political ideas. People often come and go in movements. Someone goes into paganism, someone goes into modern right-wing radical movements, someone goes into traditional culture. Kazakevich admits that there are reasons for the «working out» of the group, which the police do not report.