Building graves and shaming on TikTok: how Belarusians fight for snow-cleared spots
Belarusians' creativity is impressive even in such stressful circumstances.
In 2026, people (fortunately or not) more often choose not to quarrel in the street, but to publish a video with condemnation on TikTok. And sometimes such a strategy works.
For example, Zmitser from Svetlahorsk published a video in which he indignantly spoke about a neighbor in a BMW who occupied a cleared spot.
The next day, the man reported: the neighbor did come out with a shovel to work in the yard — he saw the video on TikTok and decided to clear the parking spot.
Homyelchuk, who is known as Ivanych on TikTok, shared his life hack: in the morning he clears a parking spot, but specially makes a snowdrift in front of it and sticks a shovel into it — he says it's like a barrier. He is satisfied with the result: "No one parked there all day — because they're too lazy to clear it."
Anton from Vitebsk got angry at people from other courtyards who occupy the cleared parking next to his house. The man showed how he deliberately piles a snowdrift in front of someone else's car. "When you're tired of clearing a parking spot for guys not from our yard," Anton captioned the video.
Aliaksei from Vitebsk conducted an experiment: he cleared a parking spot and placed a bottle of water there, to which he attached a note asking not to occupy the spot. It was successful for about 2 hours: people started to park, but saw the note and drove away. And then a driver was found who ignored the "sign".
Many people in the comments wrote to Aliaksei that they always park in a free, clear spot. The man's response was creative. Next time, in the parking lot, he made a snow cemetery: he put a cross with a sign "Hater who didn't clear the parking spot." For realism, men's boots protrude from the snowdrift.
On the other side of the barricades, it's not boring either. One TikToker from Minsk demonstrated what amuses him when people try to somehow occupy "their" spot — in the video, he deliberately knocked down a cardboard box that someone had placed on a cleared spot with an obvious purpose.
"I park in such spots out of spite. Clearing a parking spot doesn't mean you bought it!" the man explained.
By the way, is it legal to place something in a parking lot to reserve a spot for yourself? Aliaksandr Khromchanka, head of the traffic organization and road inspection department of the Main Directorate of the State Automobile Inspectorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, answered this question on STB.
In short: no, common lands can be used by everyone — you cannot place signs or buckets in a spot that a person has cleared of snow.
The question of whether it is possible to call the State Automobile Inspectorate on a person who put up their "barrier" made Khromchanka smile:
— Actually, there is indeed an obstruction on the road. We will, of course, come and remove the bucket. But we will not investigate who placed this bucket and for what purpose. Especially since a bucket in a parking spot does not create the kind of danger to road traffic that needs to be reacted to first and foremost.
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