Belarus: Masking the virus

Belarus: Masking the virus

Belarus’s all-powerful President has focused global attention on his country by ostentatiously downplaying the coronavirus pandemic. Alexander Lukashenko has allowed shops, markets and restaurants and football stadiums to remain open and is encouraging people to go out to work. In early May he laid on a grand military spectacle celebrating victory in WW2, in defiance of social distancing advice. He told Belarussians they could stay healthy by drinking vodka and driving tractors in the fields and dismissed concerns over the virus as “psychosis.” But medics and bereaved families say otherwise. And with a doubling of infections every two or three days, there is not much to laugh about in Belarus. Medical staff have allegedly been sacked and even detained for speaking out about poor conditions in hospitals and the inaccurate death certificates.

Assignment explores what lies behind President Lukashenko’s position. We hear from community activists, war veterans, tech-wizards and many other diverse people in Belarus. Lucy Ash pieces it all together with reporting by Ilya Kuziatsou.

Produced by Monica Whitlock

(Image: Jana Shostak’s Angry Mask. Human Constanta, a Belarusian human rights organisation, asked eight artists to design facemasks focusing on the coronavirus pandemic. Credit: Jakub Jasiukiewicz)

Jaksot(2000)

Black Roots: Frank Johnson, Joe Thompson and the fiddle in North Carolina

Black Roots: Frank Johnson, Joe Thompson and the fiddle in North Carolina

Acclaimed musician Rhiannon Giddens returns to her home state of North Carolina to explore the lives of two black fiddlers: Joe Thompson and Frank Johnson. Johnson was one of the first black celebrities in the southern states of the US. Born into slavery, he bought freedom for himself and his family on the back of his profits as a musician. More than 2,000 people processed through Wilmington, North Carolina for his funeral in 1871. Though he died before the start of the recording industry, his music was passed down through generations of black fiddlers in the region. The last of these fiddlers was Joe Thompson.

2 Marras 202227min

The crime that only women commit

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Society drives people, particularly women, in every way to look beautiful. We see it on television, in the movies, and in magazines. The social pressure associated with physical appearance is typically much greater for girls and women than boys and men in almost every society. We tap into different areas of culture and society across the globe to get a diverse range of experience and opinion, and look at what drives this prejudice, and why.

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The bleak reality behind the red light district

The bleak reality behind the red light district

Amsterdam's red light district hides a secret world of sexual exploitation and human trafficking. People who know what really goes on share their stories.

29 Loka 202251min

The UK’s cost of living

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Rishi Sunak begins his leadership in a time of crisis. He inherits an economy with inflation at more than 10 percent - its highest rate in 40 years - and rising food prices. During his first address as prime minister, Rishi Sunak warned there was no doubt the UK faced “a profound economic challenge.” James Reynolds speaks to several people struggling to survive. They share their tips for stretching every penny - from batch cooking to freezing bread and defrosting two slices at a time for sandwiches. We also hear from several single mothers who, despite having jobs, are all finding it increasingly difficult to afford everyday necessities.

29 Loka 202224min

Svalbard’s climate change fight

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Svalbard is the fastest warming place on earth. Deep inside the Arctic Circle, it is home to the world’s northernmost settlement, Longyearbyen, which is estimated to be heating at six times the global average. People living here have a front row seat for the climate crisis - melting glaciers, rising sea levels, avalanches and landslides. Add to this an energy crisis in Europe fuelled by the war in Ukraine, which many experts believe is now undermining the fight against climate change. Nick Beake finds out what is being done to try to save Svalbard as we know it.Producer: Kate Vandy

27 Loka 202226min

The scramble for rare earths, part 2

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Misha Glenny finds out whether the European Union can end its dependency on China for rare earths and critical raw materials and he discovers that Russia's interest in Ukraine might be partially motivated but the huge mineral deposits there.

26 Loka 202228min

Recaptive number 11,407

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An astonishing series of documents in Sierra Leone named the Registers of Liberated Africans record details of Africans freed from slavery by the British Royal Navy in the 19th Century. There is one entry in the registers that simply says 'Recaptive Number 11,407, without name, deaf and dumb'. In this documentary mixing poetry and new historical research, award-winning deaf poet Raymond Antrobus goes on a personal journey to Sierra Leone to trace a piece of forgotten history and try to find out what became of this deaf man without a name.

25 Loka 202227min

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Assassination, sabotage, cyberattacks - the undeclared war between Israel and Iran is one of the longest running conflicts in the region. As attempts to create a new deal to limit Iran's nuclear programme fail and Israel makes unprecedented alliances with its Arab neighbours, tensions are rising. Suzanne Kianpour talks to leading players in the region to find out how it all began and where it is heading.

22 Loka 202250min

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