Tomas Mazetti, creative director at the advertising agency Studio Total, behind teddy bombing in Belarus. It was he himself who was flying the plane. People have been arrested and a diplomatic crisis has erupted between Sweden and Belarus.
But Tomas Mazetti who conducted teddy [nallebjörn] bombing of Minsk regret nothing.
– No, not to do anything for fear of the dictator is to let him win, he says.
Text source: Aftonbladet translated with Google translate
It’s been seven weeks since Tomas Mazetti and Hannah Frey from the PR agency Studio Total flew his single-engine propeller plane across Belarusian territory and dropped 800 teddy bears. The aim was to show their support for the organization, ”Tell the truth” and get the people of Belarus to laugh at President Alexander Lukashenko.
The impact has been greater. The Foreign Minister and two senior generals have been sacked and people from the resistance movement have been jailed. The Swedish Ambassador Stefan Eriksson has been expelled and a diplomatic crisis has erupted between Sweden and Belarus.
But Tomas Mazetti repent not.
– It becomes so when we shake but that the situation will get better in Belarus must be worse at first, he says.
Within weeks, the elections in Belarus. Mazetti hope that the campaign will have an effect in the election campaign.
– The actual election’s rigged but I think there will be protests around the election. Then we will see how the opposition can rally around them.
– I hope that more people are resisting and see that Lukashenko is not impossible to dislodge.
According to Tomas Mazetti also Russia reacted strongly against the Swedes succeeded in entering the Belarusian territory. Countries have air defense.
– Russia think that Lukashenka has made a fool of himself and has put him under financial pressure. He gets no more money for air defense.
Several people in Belarus have been in trouble. Is not that too high a price?
– It is not a prize for our campaign, it is the price of a dictator. There are hundreds of people imprisoned there.
Was it worth it?
– Nothing is worth it until Lukashenko is gone but I hope so. Two months ago, he was unshaken, now it’s not quite so.
– I think the whole world has an obligation to act. During Nazi Germany should be more Swedes have done something. One must not be afraid of the dictator.
How do you see the diplomatic crisis?
– I’m not too familiar with it. But I know that the Ambassador, Stefan Eriksson, was very popular in Belarus.
Carl Bildt has so far refused to say that you have a part in this. How do you see it?
– He belongs to the old school foreign politicians. He wants some men make up the world with rulers while they smoke cigars. For him it’s about Bildt and Lukashenko, but that’s not what happens anymore, revolution from below.
It’s a whole new world where everyone has to be involved and fight together.
How do you go from here?
– I hope others will take over. There have been hundreds of small teddy operations worldwide and the blog ”Teddy Bears for freedom” has started. We hope for them. We can not be the leader of the Belarusian revolution, there must be Belarusians.
Are you in contact with people in Belarus today?
– No, we do not.
Stig Björne
About Stig Björne
Stig Björne