Students promote democracy in Belarus

IU Students for Global Democracy will hold its Worldwide Walk for Democracy in Belarus Saturday in Brown County. Money raised will go to groups directly contributing to democratizing Belarus, a part of the former Soviet Union. \nParticipants of the walk will meet in the circle of the Indiana Memorial Union at 11:30 a.m. and then carpool to Brown County State Park. They will then walk 12 kilometers to represent the 12 years the current president will have been in power at the time of the next election.\nOften called "Europe's last dictatorship," Belarus held its first presidential elections in 1994. The elected president, Alexander Lukashenko, has been in office ever since.\nStudents for Global Democracy, the walk's sponsor, is a worldwide organization with local beginnings. Started by IU junior Charlie Szrom in the winter of 2004, there are now chapters at Stanford and Berkeley, in Chicago, Ann Arbor, Mich., Irvine, Calif., Ontario and Kathmandu, Nepal. \n"I wanted to change the world for the better, like most people do," Szrom said. "I wanted to deal with the root of the problem (by encouraging democracy) ... I thought that would be how my time would be best spent."\nAs for the group's decision to focus on Belarus, Szrom, a former Indiana Daily Student columnist, cited his semester spent in Poland last year. Being so close to Belarus, he was able to meet with Belarusians opposed to their government. He was also able to follow the Ukraine's Orange Revolution.\nThe walk is titled "worldwide" because there are walks also organized for this weekend in 13 other locations around the world, including countries without chapters. Ghana, Poland, South Africa, Taiwan and Turkey are all supporting efforts to raise awareness and funds for Belarus. \nSzrom mostly wants to focus on solidarity as opposed to fund raising because, he said, "it's our strong point as students." \nHowever, donations are accepted and the proceeds from the sale of $15 T-shirts are donated as well.\n"When you're in Belarus and you might lose your job for what you believe in... It's pretty lonely," he said.\nPictures of the walk will be sent to Web sites and various Belarusian contacts to maintain an active dialogue.\nThe group is non-partisan and supports non-violent, pro-democratic efforts by students living in countries without democracy, Szrom said.\nSzrom said the group encourages people who did not previously sign up to come out and help the cause. There is no required fee, but donations are accepted.