Gomel art gallery advertised a Valentine's Day event. Then got scared and cancelled it
After information appeared in the public sphere that "Western" Valentine's Day continues to be celebrated in Gomel, despite an unwritten ban, one of the state institutions — the Vashchanka Art Gallery — immediately cancelled an event on this occasion, Flagstok noted .

In 2021, even the Gomel police celebrated Valentine's Day
However, the gallery did not notify the city residents about the cancellation. As Flagstok noted, the organizers simply deleted previously posted announcements from the official website and social media pages.
Now the institution's website fully complies with ideological requirements: it features the rubric "Genocide," banners "Combating Extremism" and "Year of the Belarusian Woman," videos about delegates of the All-Belarusian People's Assembly, and an announcement of the "patriotic project" "I Love My Homeland," prepared jointly with the historical club at the Russian House.

At the same time, the poster for the cancelled event was preserved on other internet resources. The "Valentine's Day with Woody Allen" evening planned a screening and discussion of his film "Annie Hall" — a comedic melodrama, as well as games and visits to exhibitions.

Lyudmila Shimbalyova is the director of the Vashchanka Gallery — a confidante of Alyaksandr Lukashenka in presidential elections, head of the district organization of the pro-government Belarusian Union of Women, and a delegate to the All-Belarusian People's Assembly. In 2020, Lukashenka awarded her a medal. She was also one of the public figures at pro-government mass events in Gomel.

Lyudmila Shimbalyova at the All-Belarusian People's Assembly
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