Igor Bantser

Igor Ramanovich Bantser (Belarusian: Ігар Рaманaвіч Банцар; Polish: Igor Ramanowicz Bancer; Russian: Игорь Романович Банцер) is a Polish Belarusian[1] musician, activist, journalist, worker, and events organiser. He is the former editor-in-chief of the Magazyn Polski[2] and of the Głos znad Niemna ("Voice from over the Neman") in exile as well as the former spokesperson of the Union of Poles in Belarus. Bantser is perhaps best known as the founder and singer of the Grodno-based streetpunk band Mister X, though he also serves as head of the "Grodno Rock-club".[3]

Igor Bantser
Ігар Банцар
Bantser performing live in Minsk, March 2020
Born
Igor Bancer

(1980-02-24) February 24, 1980
Minsk, Byelorussian SSR
NationalityPolish Belarusian,
Soviet Belarusian
Occupation
  • Singer
  • Songwriter
  • Activist
  • Journalist
  • Manual labourer
Musical career
Genres
Instruments
  • Vocals
Years active2003–present
Labels
  • Street Beat Records
Associated actsMister X
Websitebancer.by
mx-band.by

Childhood and early life

Born in Minsk, then largest city in the Byelorussian SSR and now the capital of the Republic of Belarus, Igor moved with his family to Grodno in 1986. There he attended school number 25 (it is customary in Eastern Europe to name primary schools with numbers). In 1997 he became a member of the Малады Фронт organisation; in the same year he began working as a journalist for the "Пагоня" newspaper. From 1992 until 2002, Bantser lived in Warszawa – capital of Poland – where he studied international relations at the local university. During his stay in Poland he actively took part in efforts to promote the democratisation of Belarus, cooperating with Belarusian political migrants and the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights. After returning to Belarus he worked as a journalist for several Russian language opposition magazines. Igor was also editor-in-chief of the Polish-language monthly publication Magazyn Polski in 2007.[2]

Musical career
Mister X performing live in Minsk, in March of 2020.

Ever since 2003, when with Boris from Oi! Bombers he founded the Mister X streetpunk band, he has been the group's primary vocalist.[4] The whole band, including Igor, identify as SHARP[5] and form part of the anti-racist skinhead and Oi! scene in West Belarus.[6][7] Partially thanks to Bantser's fluency in Polish, Mister X have become well-known on the underground punk scene in Poland, where they are often referred to as "the most well-known Belarusian punk rock band" and "the flagship of Belarusian street punk".[8][9] Since their formation, the band have toured with Igor in many European countries outside of their usual venues of Belarus, Poland, Russia, Latvia, and Lithuania[10] – including Germany and other Western European countries.[11] Depending on the song, Igor writes his lyrics and records his vocals in Russian, Polish, English, or Belarusian.[12]

Although Igor and his band's self-proclaimed apolitical stance initially led to them being somewhat ostracised on the then highly politicised Belarusian punk scene, it has not gotten in the way of garnering an international following of fans in the years following the band's creation,[13] despite difficulties with the country's regime and travelling.[14] The band and their fans have also experienced police brutality and repressions at the hands of the local authorities during one of their gigs in Ryazan, Russia.[15][16][17]

Activism (2007-2015)

Due to his critical stance of opposition towards the authoritarian regime of Alexander Lukashenko, which involves political and social activism on his part, Bantser has been imprisoned and punished by the Belarusian law enforcement numerous times. In March 2007 he was arrested and convicted for "swearing in the presence of militiamen", which resulted in his imprisonment for a period of 10 days[18] and he was yet again stopped in October of the same year. Andżelika Borys stood in his defence, which resulted in her conviction and being charged with a fine.[2] In the following years of 2008, 2009, and 2010, Igor was stopped several times by the militia of Belarus – often arrested and sometimes charged with criminal offences, mostly for his reluctance to accept state authority and insistence on protest; at one point in 2010 he went on a hunger strike.[19][20]

On the morning of 14 June 2011, Bantser was stopped by the militia in front of his home in Grodno. In this way he was prevented from making his way to the local courtroom to attend the process of Andrzej Poczobut. For the remainder of the day he was held in solitary confinement. The following day he was convicted to 5 days of arrest and charged for "uncensurable vocabulary". His case was considered in the militia building instead of the courts. Under arrest, as a sign of protest, he refused all food and liquids, which resulted in rapid weight loss of 8 kilograms; he was also for a period of time held in an overcrowded cell.[21]

Yet again on 24 June 2011, Igor was brutally stopped by the local authorities, as the militiamen dragged him across the street, for "being in a forbidden place". His process was once again considered in a militia building rather than a proper courtroom. He was accused of "loud swearing in public" and "refusing to submit himself to the militia". The case against him was shown by Bantser as being inconsistent, since according to the militia he was in 2 places at the same time – his innocence was confirmed by numerous witnesses. Regardless and contrary to the facts, the judge charged him a fine of 2,100,000 Belarusian rubles (then equal to more than 1000 Polish złoty). According to Grażyna Szałkiewicz, who gave testimony of Igor's innocence, the judge raised her voice and behaved aggressively towards her and the defence.[22]

In early July 2011, Bantser was arrested and charged the following day for "taking part in an illegal gathering on the 28th of June"; this resulted in a conviction and 10 days of arrest. He once again decided to go on a hunger strike in response to his unfair treatment.[23] On 1 June, in 2012, Igor was stopped and arrested for 13 days after picketing in defence of the Polish School in Grodno.[24] Since 2015, after receiving intimidating phone-calls from the militia with threats of forced expulsion from the country, Bantser has been focusing more on pursuing his musical calling while making ends meet.[25]

2020 protests

When the 2020 Belarusian protests escalated following the publication of falsified election results on the evening of 9 August 2020, police forces reportedly actively looked for Igor and detained him once he was found. Immediately after being incarcerated, Igor started a hunger strike. Initially his wife and friends, as well as his lawyer, were unable to establish contact with him due to a lack of information from the authorities. He was beaten twice during his time in arrest, but eventually released after 72 hours in detention.[26] As the protests continued in Grodno, all opposition gatherings were eventually outlawed; on 24 August, Bantser was arrested alongside other anarchist and antifascist demonstrators for taking part in peaceful protest. He was given 10 days of arrest, while his peers were given 7, and once again initiated a hunger strike.[27]

Although he was released following the 10 days, police officers came to Bantser's house late on the evening of 20 October to arrest him yet again. This time his apartment was searched and his notebook was seized as well.[28] What set this incident apart from the others was that the local authorities followed it up with disinformation, claiming that Igor showed his genitals to law enforcement as part of his performance protest in front of the police station; a recording from the incident shows him only lowering his trousers to reveal a thong and no frontal nudity could be seen at all.[29] This fabrication was used in conjunction with Bantser's activism to charge him with hooliganism, which according to Belarusian law could lead to his imprisonment for up to 3 years.[30]

Personal life

Igor is a committed anti-fascist[3] with a zero tolerance attitude towards racism in the skinhead scene, recognising the multi-cultural and ethnically diverse roots of his musical genre; likewise, he is an outspoken opponent of homophobia and sexism in punk rock and wider society.[31] He does not eat meat and does not drink alcohol, his personal interests besides punk and rock music include: MMA, Muay Thai, and Rugby.[3] Bantser has been married twice and has three children – one from the first marriage and two from the second.[3] He is married to Polish-Belarusian activist Anżalika Arechwa,[lower-alpha 1] with whom he has two children.[28] While his lifestyle in many ways could be seen as straight edge, Igor does not seem to openly identify as such. He is an agnostic.[32]

Notes
  1. Her name can be rendered as Анжаліка Арэхва (or Anżalika Arechwa) in Belarusian, Anżelika Orechwo in Polish, and Анжелика Орехво in Russian.

References
  1. Katarzyna Ponikowska (October 4, 2013). "Punkowcy z Białorusi zagrają w KocieKarola". Gazeta Krakowska. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  2. RMF FM – newsroom (October 10, 2007). "Białoruś: Milicja zatrzymała Andżelikę Borys i Igora Bancera". RMF24. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  3. "Igor Bancer personal www!". bancer.by. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  4. Mister X. "Mister X – Facebook Info". Facebook. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  5. Katarzyna Ponikowska (October 12, 2013). "Muzyka kontra reżim". Dziennik Polski. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  6. Yevgeniy Sotona (November 7, 2015). "Belarusian Skinhead Scene Report!". Silesia Trojan Skins. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  7. Arciom Siniewicz (May 11, 2015). "Jak hartował się grodzieński punk-rock! WYWIAD". Belsat. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  8. "3 maja koncert!". Stowarzyszenie Awantura. April 25, 2011. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  9. Yakiz (April 30, 2011). "Milicja Live part 16: The Headhunters, Mister X, Zakład Produkcyjny – koncert". studentnews.pl. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  10. Mister X (July 14, 2014). "Back from Russian 2014 tour". Facebook. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  11. Mister X (March 9, 2016). "European Spring Tour 2016". Facebook. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  12. Mister X. "До самого конца at Bandcamp". Bandcamp. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  13. "Музыка: Группы: Mister X". russian-rockmusic.narod.ru/. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  14. "MISTER X: Скинхед – не фашист!". Музыкальная Газета. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  15. Виктор Граков (October 7, 2013). "В Рязани полицейские в масках сорвали рок-концерт". Комсомольская правда. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  16. "Рязанский кошмар". Частный Корреспондент. October 8, 2013. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  17. "Избиение зрителей на рок-концерте в Рязани: Варварская силовая акция ментов". Свободная Россия. October 7, 2013. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  18. Andrzej Poczobut (March 19, 2007). "Białoruś: Skazano polskiego dziennikarza, by zamknąć mu usta?". Gazeta Wyborcza. Retrieved January 23, 2010.
  19. PAP (July 29, 2009). "Białoruś: Działacz ZPB Igor Bancer ostrzeżony przez prokuraturę". money.pl. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  20. mch (February 15, 2010). "Białoruś: Milicja zatrzymała Andżelikę Borys". Super Express. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  21. "Сухая галадоўка Ігара Банцара: восем кіляграмаў вагі". Радыё Свабода. June 19, 2011. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  22. "Ігару Банцару — штраф 2.100.000 рублёў". Радыё Свабода. June 24, 2011. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  23. "Przyjaciel Poczobuta znów skazany na areszt". Polskie Radio. July 4, 2011. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  24. "Andrzej Poczobut: będziemy bronić polskiej szkoły". Polskie Radio. June 3, 2012. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  25. Eva-Lena Lörzer (November 8, 2019). "„Nie jesteśmy w Korei Północnej. Nie od razu zabierają cię do paki. Wszystkich nie mogą zamknąć"". Newsweek Polska. Retrieved November 10, 2019.
  26. Alex Kot (August 13, 2020). "Alex on Instagram: Igor was beaten twice by the police..." Instagram. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  27. "У Горадні на суткі за ўдзел у акцыях асудзілі чатырох анархістаў". Радыё Свабода. August 24, 2020. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  28. "За уличный перформанс в Гродно возбуждено уголовное дело в отношении музыканта". Naviny.by. October 21, 2020. Retrieved November 2, 2020.
  29. "Мастера Вранья и Дезинформации". euroby.info. October 22, 2020. Retrieved November 2, 2020.
  30. АЧК-Беларусь (October 23, 2020). "Анархисту и антифашисту Игорю Банцеру предъявили вчера обвинения по статье 339 часть 1 УК РБ (до 3-х лет лишения свободы). Арестован до суда". Twitter. Retrieved November 2, 2020.
  31. "Sport i uprzedzenia są ze sobą sprzeczne – wywiad z wokalistą grupy Mister X". 161 Crew. August 8, 2013. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  32. "Yeahor Booncer – Dane kontaktowe i podstawowe informacje". Facebook. June 14, 2019. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
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