The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Belarus included the slogan "Long Live Belarus!" (“Long live Belarus!”), which was widely used by the opposition during the 2020 protests, was included in the list of Nazi symbols and paraphernalia. The decree of the ministry is published on the national legal portal.
The document refers to the exclamation "Long live Belarus", which is accompanied by "raising the right hand with a straightened palm." The ministry claims that this is "a collaborationist salute, which is the symbol of the 13th Belarusian police battalion under the SD and the 30th grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen-SS." It is compared to the Nazi "Heil Hitler".
Whether the same exclamation without a raised hand will be considered Nazi is not specified.
For “propaganda or public demonstration, production and distribution of Nazi symbols or paraphernalia” in Belarus, criminal liability is provided – it was introduced in 2021. The article assumes up to four years in prison.
The pro-government historian and member of the House of Representatives Igor Marzalyuk initiated the initiative to recognize the greeting “Long live Belarus” as Nazi, the Belarusian service of Radio Liberty wrote . The slogan has become a symbol of protests against the regime of President Alexander Lukashenko in 2020.
