January 24, Pozirk. The information ministry has added 30 titles to the list of print publications that contradict Belarus’ national interests, bringing the total to 65.
The list was introduced in November 2024 and originally included 35 titles.
The ministry says that it contains publications that distort historical truth, promote alternative sexual orientation, and incite hatred. It also targets books on “subcultures that are not traditional for Belarusian society” or popularize violence, cruelty and pornography.
In addition to journalist Milana Logunova’s book of Gonzo reports on kinks and fetishes, the information ministry banned “Gulag: A History.” It was written by American journalist and historian Anne Applebaum, whose ancestors emigrated from Belarus. She is married to Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski.
Her book on Stalin’s camps was first published in 2003 and won a Pulitzer Prize in 2004. It appears that the Belarusian commission on symbols, attributes and information products found it to “distort historical truth.”
Belarusian censors also banned Hanya Yanagihara’s books “A Little Life” and “To Paradise.”
