Letter

June 13, 2021

As you may know from the news, my country - Belarus - has been facing hard times since last year, when my fellow Belarusian citizens and I encountered a violent police crackdown on protests following rigged presidential elections in August 2020.

The cornerstone of this regime is the state propaganda, which propagates hate and fear, advocates political repressions, spreads misinformation, and humiliates people who criticize Lukashenko. And the Belarusian State Television and Radio Company (BTRC) is the main part of the propaganda. 

As a Belarusian citizen, I was shocked to learn that the BTRC has been licensed to broadcast The X Factor TV show.

I understand that the agreement with BTRC had been executed long before my country faced brutal repressions and atrocities to drown out any signs of freedom. However, the extent to which BTRC is complicit in the current infringement of universal human rights and freedoms in Belarus doesn't let it host this show.

Here are some specific examples.

I. This is how the announcements on The X Factor web page looks like on my mobile:

At the top of the page is a media banner with the advertisement of the "confession" of the political prisoner - Raman Pratasyevich. Raman was aboard the Ryanair airliner landed by force with a military jet in Belarus on May 23.

Despite BTRC not recording the so-called "interview" with Raman Pratasyevich themselves, they are currently promoting it actively on their website https://www.tvr.by/. I must clarify here that this interview was recorded to frighten everyone who dares to oppose Lukashenko's regime.

And now imagine that broadcasting of The X Factor in Belarus was interrupted by an advertisement with another political prisoner’s confession. How do you think it would impact your image?

Showing forced confessions is not new for BTRC. Here (at 5:34), you can see Mikola Dziadok confessing his love for his motherland, with a state flag in the background.  

The fact that the television company had forcibly aired interviews has already lead to suspension of BTRC's membership in the EBU.

II. BTRC gives the floor to abhorrent propagandists like Hryhory (Grigory) Azaronak and Kanstantsin Prydybaila.

Azaronak is on the Latvia’s, Lithuania’s and Estonia’s blacklist being banned from entering these countries.

Here is an example of his "works": https://twitter.com/HannaLiubakova/status/1373902984841732096?s=20

In this video, prominent Belarusians and opposition leaders are presented as rats, some of them just spoke out against the regime and violence. Among these people are Aliaksandra Herasimenia (a swimmer, Olympic bronze medalist, multiple European and world champion), Ihar Leshchenya (former Ambassador to Slovakia), Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, former TV hosts of the state TV, etc.

To understand who Prydybaila is, please watch this video where he is urging to poison Belarusian opposition members:

"...I just think that I am a bloodier tyrant than Lukashenko...I simply know where they live in Vilnius and Warsaw. I even know their favorite restaurants. If it was up to me, I would poison them in restaurants."

III. Denis Dudinski, TV host on BTRC, was dismissed in July 2020 for voicing his civil stance. 

Recently, he and his wife have had to leave Belarus for fear of politically motivated prosecution.

IV. Last year’s Eurovision entry VAL was not allowed to represent Belarus in Rotterdam this year because the artist “have no conscience” – as the head of the BTRC put it. This was a price to pay for their words. Instead, the BTRC sent a band known for mocking protesters resulting in Belarus having been disqualified from Eurovision. 

It is worth to mention that BTRC's chairman, Ivan Eismont, is under the UK and EU sanctions, being "responsible for the dissemination of state propaganda in public media”.

And last but not least, BTRC has recently revealed the mentors of the X Factor show. One of them is Sergey Parkhomenko (stage name: Seryoga).

In his recent interview for BTRC, he commented the brutal crackdown on protests in August 2020 saying that the riot police did a great job. 

I suggest you read this article showing that Belarusian police aimed for protesters' vital organs and most people were beaten by the police in their wagons and detention centers, not during street clashes. So this is what Parkhomenko glorifies.

Based on the facts above, I urge you to make every effort to prevent The X Factor (Belarus) from being controlled and broadcasted by the BTRC.

If no action is taken on the matter, the reputation of the X Factor show in general and Mr. Cowell specifically might be at stake.

If there is no legal way to revoke BTRC’s license, it is always better than nothing - to make a clear statement condemning BTRC.

Yours sincerely,