Lukashenka Shows True Leadership

Just when you thought all was lost in Belarus, that the country was devoid of true leadership, the government leaves us with egg on our collective face by showing how REAL leadership works.

Belarusian lawmakers have passed legislation that would crack down on Internet dating and online spouse searches in the latest of a series of stringent government controls backed by authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko.

What possible reason could the government have to put online dating at the top of its list of threats to the state?

Authorities said the measure, which was passed 101-1 by the lower house of parliament Wednesday, was intended to help halt human trafficking in the former Soviet republic.

Ahh yes, match.com: a diabolical front for human trafficking. But the new bill would do more than just outlaw online dating.

The bill also would require Belarusian students to receive written permission from the Ministry of Education to study abroad if the length of stay is longer than 30 days. Foreign companies seeking to hire Belarusian students for summer jobs also would need ministry approval.

"The measures are directed at improving the mechanisms guaranteeing effective counteraction to human trafficking _ one of the most dangerous phenomena modern society faces in its development," First Deputy Interior Minister Alexander Shurko said.

So, let me see if I've gotten this right. According to the Belarusian government, the three main facilitators of human trafficking are, in no particular order: online dating, study abroad and internships in other countries. Is it any wonder this government can't get any respect from anyone else in the world besides Russia, China, Iran, Venezuela and Cuba? Perhaps, at least in the latter two cases, foreign influence is the biggest fear with an election coming up next year. As for banning online dating? Well, I'm flummoxed.