Happy birthday, leader!

On October 7, President Putin turns 60 years old. “The Young Guard of United Russia (MGER) is going to turn the leader’s anniversary into a national holiday . In Rostov they will hang congratulations on the bridge, and in Chelyabinsk they are preparing a huge postcard where everyone can sign. A concert has been planned in Putin’s homeland, St. Petersburg.” A musical compliment." The opposition will also celebrate the president's birthday with the event "Seeing Grandfather to Retirement" not far from the administration of the head of state. Putin himself, according to his press secretary, will celebrate the holiday in a narrow family circle and is not going to go anywhere.

PublicPost looked at how the birthdays of Vladimir Putin's colleagues are celebrated in other countries, and found that the elected leaders of democratic countries are not honored with nationwide celebrations. Unlike leaders who are not elected.

DPRK

In North Korea this year, a new public holiday appeared in honor of the birthday of the country's deceased leader Kim Jong Il - "Shining Star Day." In addition, there are monuments and portraits of the leader of the North Korean Workers' Party everywhere.

Previously, the DPRK declared an amnesty for prisoners on the anniversaries of the late leaders. This year there was no exception.

Photo: Reuters

Venezuela

President Hugo Chavez celebrated his 58th birthday in the poor Caracas suburb of Petare at a rally as part of his campaign for re-election as president. The Venezuelan president climbed onto a truck and greeted the people. He stated that he had recovered from cancer and was ready to rule the country for many years.

Photo: Reuters

Cuba

The birthday of Cuban leader Fidel Castro (Chairman of the country's State Council from 1976 to 2008) used to be celebrated annually on August 13. In this regard, there are usually no folk festivals in Cuba, and everyone can send postcards to the birthday person. Castro's 80th birthday was celebrated for a whole month.

Photo: Reuters

In 2007, on August 13 at midnight, fireworks went off in Havana in his honor, and from that moment on, the Cuban authorities stopped celebrating the Comandante’s birthday. On Fidel's 85th birthday, the first unusual wedding in the history of the island took place in Cuba. The newlyweds - an HIV-infected gay rights activist and an admitted transsexual - thus congratulated the former leader of Cuba, who had previously condemned homosexuals, and in 2010 publicly apologized to them.

Thailand

In Thailand there is a special public holiday - the King's Birthday or Father's Day. Every year on December 3, people celebrate the birthday of Bhumibol Adulyadej. On the same day, at the Royal Square in Bangkok, the elite units of the Royal Guard confirm their oath to His Majesty. The whole country is celebrating: congratulations are hung on the buildings. As night falls in Bangkok, fireworks explode around the Grand Royal Palace and Ratchadamnoen Street.

Photo: Reuters

Germany

According to Forbes, the most influential woman in the world, Angela Merkel, who has ruled Germany for six years but lives in an ordinary apartment in Berlin, does not celebrate her birthday. Usually on July 17, the German Chancellor deals with matters of national importance.

Photo: Reuters

On the day of her 55th birthday in 2009, Merkel arrived at the congress of the Christian Social Union that opened in Nuremberg before. However, the chancellor's anniversary was still marked by the release of a Barbie doll in a suit and with a bun on her head.

United Kingdom

British Queen Elizabeth II, who was born on April 21, 1926 in London, celebrates her birthday at Windsor Castle. Moreover, the official birthday holiday of the monarch in Great Britain does not coincide with the real birthday of Elizabeth II, which falls on April 18.

Photo: Reuters

Usually on April 21, the holiday covers the entire British capital: the Queen is escorted by a motorcade through the streets, and the townspeople joyfully throw flowers and notes wishing good health at the car. In the evening there is a traditional fireworks display of 21 salvos.

Photo: blogs.canoe.ca

This year, on Elizabeth II's birthday, there was a parade with the participation of three thousand military personnel, an air show and a gala reception at the end of which a 70-kilogram cake appeared. For the holiday, the British Queen invited monarchs from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Brunei and Swaziland, who are considered bloody dictators in Europe.

Sweden

King Charles XI Gustav does not rule the country, but his birthday - April 30 - is celebrated by the entire kingdom. People from all over the country gather near the castle in Stockholm, and anyone can personally present their gift to the king.

Norway

In honor of King Harald V, the national flag is raised on February 21 - just like on any other holiday or memorable date. There are no special lavish celebrations for this occasion.

Denmark

Queen Margrethe II, whom the Danes love very much and affectionately call “Daisy,” celebrates her birthday quite solemnly. Every year on April 16, on the square near the Amalienborg palace complex in Copenhagen, at exactly noon, a solemn congratulatory ceremony is held with a march of soldiers to the music of an orchestra. The Queen, meanwhile, waves from the palace balcony. Margrethe II then leaves and the audience calls for an encore. That's the whole holiday.

Netherlands

The Dutch celebrate Konninginnedag on April 30 - the birthday of the queen, but not the current Beatrix. The holiday is dedicated to Queen Juliana, who reigned from 1948 to 1980, and therefore the Dutch are accustomed to honoring the queen on April 30th. Throughout the day, folk festivities take place on the streets of The Hague, Amsterdam and Rotterdam, treats are distributed, slot machines operate, and trading platforms are open where you can sell anything and absolutely legally. By nightfall, discos begin: people are having fun and smoking hashish in honor of the queen.

Japan

The birthday of the reigning emperor is celebrated in Japan as a national holiday, during the Heisei era - December 23. Typically, the imperial family goes out onto the veranda of the palace and the citizens greet the emperor, who makes a short speech. On this day, the gates of the palace are open so that everyone can come and leave wishes for the birthday boy. As a rule, about 20 thousand Japanese come to specially installed tables where writing materials lie and write kind words for Emperor Akihito.

Ukraine

President Viktor Yanukovych celebrates his birthday in Crimea. For three years in a row, on July 9, he comes to state dacha No. 11 "Zarya", which was built in 1988 for USSR President Mikhail Gorbachev. At a three-story dacha with a penthouse, a tennis court, a billiard room, a gym and a sauna, Yanukovych celebrated his birthday with guests - people's deputies in the amount of 90 people.

USA

President Barack Obama celebrated his 51st birthday modestly on August 5: he went with friends to play golf at Andrews Air Force Base, and then had dinner with his family at the Camp David country residence. Obama's supporters wrote congratulations to him on the president's campaign Facebook page.

Cambodia

On June 18, Cambodia celebrates a national holiday - the birthday of Queen Moniat, the mother of the current king Norodom Sihamoni. For the sake of the holiday in Cambodia, an official day off is designated, on which Cambodians go early in the morning to temples, where they pray for the health of the queen. There are no mass celebrations on this day.

Brunei

The 50th anniversary of the 29th Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah on July 13, 1996 was included in the Guinness Book of Records as the most expensive holiday of this kind. About $37 million was spent on the festivities, $17 million of which was received by the late King of Pop Michael Jackson, who performed for the Sultan. And in 2006, Hassanal Bolkiah’s birthday was celebrated for more than a month - until August 18. At the same time, the Sultan himself took part in sports competitions - he walked a distance of 3.8 kilometers in 26 minutes. In addition, Hassanal Bolkiah congratulated his employees on his birthday and increased the salaries of civil servants. And then he held a dinner at the Istana Nurul Iman palace for 10 thousand guests, where there were relatives and politicians.

Chechnya

Chechnya is part of the Russian Federation, but the birthday of the head of the republic is celebrated as if they live on their own. In 2011, Ramzan Kadyrov turned 35 years old. He forbade organizing celebrations in the republic on this occasion, but organized a city day. Nevertheless, the residents of the Chechen capital were congratulated by violinist Vanessa May, Hollywood actors Hilary Swank and Jean Claude Van Damme, Fyodor Bondarchuk, Sergei Bezrukov and many others.

Pop singer Seal performs in front of Kadyrov. Photo: ITAR-TASS

And, despite the fact that Kadyrov forbade anyone to remember his personal birthday, Oscar-winning Swank, imitating her legendary colleague from the past, sang to the head of Chechnya: “Happy Birthday, Mr. President! The central event of the solemn day was the opening of the high-rise business center "Grozny City", the construction of which began in 2007. The area of ​​the complex, located on the banks of the Sunzha, is 4.5 hectares - there are two residential buildings with 18 floors, one residential building with 42 floors and two more 30-story buildings: a five-star hotel and a business center.