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Litesound frontman thanks Lukashenka

Litesound frontman Dzmitry Karakin has thanked Alyaksandr Lukashenka for his order that the pop-rock band should represent Belarus at the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest instead of Alena Lanskaya.

“A very big thanks to the president,” said Mr. Karakin at a news conference held in Minsk on Friday. “It is him who should be given credit for everything.”

Earlier in the day, Mr. Lukashenka held a government conference to announce that a probe had confirmed allegations of vote rigging during Eurofest, the national selection contest for the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest, in Ms. Lanskaya`s favor.

He said that Belarus would be represented at the contest in Baku this spring by Litesound instead of the 26-year-old blonde.

The Eurofest final was held in Minsk on February 14. After Ms. Lanskaya, a resident of Mahilyow, was announced the winner, the frontman of runners-up Litesound walked out in protest, while the third-place winner, Hyunesh, did not even appear on the stage to collect her prize.

“We are overwhelmed by emotions,” Mr. Karakin said at the news conference. “But we were sure that justice would triumph. All of us have contributed to this. It is a victory of the Belarusian people.”

Alyaksandr Tsikhanovich, Eurofest coordinator who chaired the jury, and his daughter Anastasiya, producer of the contest, also attended the news conference.
Both of them said that they had learned about the Belarusian leader’s decision to replace the country’s Eurovision 2012 entry from news sources, like other members of the general public.

Mr. Tsikhanovich said that neither he nor his daughter had anything to do with the viewer poll, which he suggested had been rigged.

His daughter said that national telecommunications monopoly Beltelecom and the Belarusian State Television and Radio Company had been in charge of the telephone vote among the viewers, noting that she was not aware who had counted the votes again and in what way.

At the news conference, Ms. Tsikhanovich presented Mr. Karakin and his brother Uladzimir with the Eurofest award certificate.

The previous day, Ms. Lanskaya visited the main office of the Belarusian State Television and Radio Company to return the Eurofest figurine of a blue bird worth EUR3,000; she did not explain the reasons behind her decision, said Ms. Tsikhanovich. //BelaPAN