As part of the GLOBSEC Forum in Prague, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya took part in the session “Holding the Line on Democratic Resilience”, dedicated to the challenges facing modern democracies. Participants discussed how to strengthen social cohesion, maintain trust in institutions, and ensure the role of civil society and independent media under pressure.
The session also featured:
- Glauk Konjufca, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora of Kosovo;
- Rob Cameron, BBC correspondent in Prague;
- Robert Čásenský, Editor-in-Chief of Seznam Zprávy;
- Cas Mudde, Professor at the University of Georgia;
- Mark Leonard, Director of the European Council on Foreign Relations.
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya shared her insights on the greatest threats to democratic resilience: “Many people believe that threats to democracy usually come from authoritarian regimes, from somewhere outside. But I think people themselves must also take responsibility. People begin simply enjoying democracy and forget that they must defend it every day. When you see people sacrificing their freedom and even their lives every day for democratic values, you will also try to contribute to democracy in your own countries. No truly democratic society, where everyone feels responsibility, can be destroyed from the outside”.
She also shared the Belarusian experience of what happens when formal state institutions fail: “When COVID started, our state institutions were not working to help people, and ordinary people self-organized to support one another. When the election campaign began, Belarusians self-organized again: people, media outlets, civil society organizations, businesses. That is why I always say that first and foremost, we must invest in people and their education, so they understand their responsibility. And that is why, when I ask for support for our democratic movement, I ask to invest in people who genuinely want to build a democratic society. Because sooner or later, we will win”.
