Taking off shoes. Did Lukashenka insult Nazarbayev?


During Friday’s visit to Vitsebsk fur factory, president Lukashenka has boasted that his Kazakh counterpart Nursultan Nazarbayev envied his wearing shoes ‘made in Belarus’.

“I often meet with other leaders, they flaunt in Italian or some other shoes. Nazarbayev once asked: “Where did you get these shoes?””In Belarus!” I answered. When he said ‘unbelievable!’ I took them off and showed him, there was Marco company sign on them,” Lukashenka said.

But demonstrating soles and bottoms of feet in often perceived as disrespect in the Middle East.

“According to the Muslim tradition, showing feet and even pointing them with a finger is an insulting gesture. This includes not only bare feet, but soles as well. It stems from ritual purity. The soles touch ground and get dirty. For example, at the entrance to a mosque believers take off their shoes. But intentions are also important in the Muslim culture. Lukashenka seems to have had no idea that this situation could insult someone. Therefore, Nazarbayev could be offended if I he wanted to, but of course, it is not necessarily the case,” Prof Marek Dziekan told Belsat.

In December 2008, the story of ‘a shoe insult’ made international headlines. Then an Iraqi journalist threw his shoes at George Bush Jr protesting against the war in Iraq.

belsat.eu

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