‘Better to Die Standing’: A European Strongman Scoffs at Virus

(Bloomberg) --

The borders are open. People are still visiting their favorite cafes, and parks are full of families. Seen as one of Europe’s most restrictive countries, Belarus is taking a more laissez-faire approach to the spread of the deadly coronavirus.

“It’s better to die standing than to live on your knees,” said President Alexander Lukashenko, 65, laughing in an interview with the state-owned ONT TV channel after playing an ice hockey match on Saturday.

Lukashenko, who’s led the landlocked post-Soviet nation of 9.4 million people for more than quarter of a century, said playing sports, especially his favorite game of ice hockey, is the best medicine to fight the virus. So far, he has resisted introducing widespread quarantines even as neighboring countries such as Poland and Russia shut their borders and start lockdown measures to fend off the pandemic. Officials have mostly been encouraging people, especially seniors, to stay home when possible and avoid unnecessary exposure to risks.

Belarus’s health ministry said cases jumped to 152 on Monday, a 62% increase from Friday. No deaths have been officially reported. The country has about 2,000 ventilators and 1,500 respiratory apparatuses. At hospitals, coronavirus patients are separated to avoid large-scale infection of other patients and medical personnel.

Lukashenko, who’s still focused on the economic impact of coronavirus, called foreign politicians’ measures a “psychosis” used to advance their own interests, from taking protesters off the streets to managing elections. He has warned companies, both state and private, against firing people.

“If any company, small or big, throws people out into the street, it will hardly be able to exist in Belarus,” he said last week.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.