The International ice hockey federation IIHF has given the 2014 World championship to Belarus, a country were those who are against the president are abused on the streets and in the arrests and sentenced to long imprisonments. This is very wrong. I am always skeptical to awarding big sport events to dictatorships and other prestigious events, but this case is special. I will explain why.
Lukashenko does not base his dictatorship on an ideology so much as on himself. He wants to be perceived as a true, skillful and macho leader who is a safeguard for stability and development. He is also very interested in ice hockey and often appears in ice hockey equipment on official pictures. It is part of his image. This tournament is extremely important to him, both as a person and as president. It will be used to sharpen the image he wants to create of himself, and domestically it will be considered a personal triumph for him.
History is full of other example when dictatorships have used an Olympic tournament for propaganda. I don’t have to go as far back as to the Olympics in Berlin 1936 or Moscow 1980. We can also look at Beijing 2008. It is always benefiting for a dictatorship to show that they are able to arrange a tournament like this and to be able to show an image of their country which they have chosen themselves. As in China 2008, the oppression against the opposition will increase before the tournament in order to prevent “disturbances”.
Some people say sports and politics should not be connected. This is naive. Sports, big business and politics are very much connected on the global level today; for good and for bad, like it or not, but it is a reality. Sports do not exist separately in a vacuum.
Strong political forces in the United States and in the EU now want to convince the IIHF to take the tournament away from Lukashenko on their meeting in May. This is very good. Unfortunately it might have the opposite effect since international sports federations are normally very sensitive to anything that can be perceived as political pressure. Nevertheless, I hope that common since and dignity will prevail. Don’t reward ”Luka’s” oppression by fulfilling his dream.
