Warsaw Riots: Belarusians Face Deportation After Rapper’s Concert

A massive concert by popular Belarusian rapper Max Korzh in Warsaw descended into chaos, leading to widespread riots and the detention of over 100 people. Now, dozens of Belarusian nationals could be expelled from Poland as authorities vow a “resolute and tough” response to the disturbances that shocked the Polish capital.

Polish Minister of Internal Affairs and Administration, Marcin Kierwiński, announced that authorities are considering deportation for foreign attendees who broke the law. “If these individuals have violated the law… we will certainly take measures to return these people to their country of origin,” Kierwiński stated. He confirmed that Warsaw police detained 109 individuals for offenses including drug possession and assaulting security personnel, and are reviewing footage of flags with “totalitarian symbols” seen in the crowd.

The concert, which drew an estimated 80,000 fans, was marked by an unusual level of unrest that began even before the performance. A steward working the event noted the stark contrast with previous concerts at the same venue by artists like Imagine Dragons and Jennifer Lopez. While those shows saw almost no incidents, there were at least 50 attempts to jump security barriers during Korzh’s performance. “Korzh’s concerts always have a similar atmosphere, but Warsaw was not ready for it,” the steward commented.

Local officials were caught completely by surprise. The mayor of Warsaw’s Wola district, Krzysztof Strzałkowski, revealed that the organizer lacked the necessary permit for a mass event of such a large scale. Police presence was initially minimal and had to be significantly reinforced to bring the situation under control, with the event eventually being shut down by police. Strzałkowski confirmed the city would bill the organizer for the extensive cleanup costs.

The incident has highlighted a significant cultural divide. Max Korzh, a Russian-speaking artist, is largely unknown to the Polish public, as the newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza noted. His immense popularity stems from Russian-speaking diasporas from across the post-Soviet space, who traveled from all over Europe for the show. The paper called him “the most unknown performer to ever fill the most famous stadium in the country.”

The aftermath has sparked a heated debate within the Belarusian emigrant community. While many have issued apologies to the Polish people for the behavior of their compatriots, others offer a more complex perspective. Antoś Zhukov of the Center for Belarusian Solidarity argued that Korzh, with his ambiguous political stance, represents the “average Belarusian.” “Max is the face of the real Belarus, which you may or may not like,” Zhukov said, suggesting that to “hate Korzh is, in fact, to show how much you dislike this ‘common folk’.”