As a teenager, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya visited Ireland several times as part of a recuperation program for children affected by the Chornobyl disaster. She stayed with Henry and Marion Dean’s family in the town of Roscrea, County Tipperary. It was there that Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya first became closely acquainted with European values.
She shared this story during her speech at the “Ireland–Belarus: National Cultural Identities” Conference in Dublin:
“Those summers changed my life.
I learned English here and even some Irish. I discovered another culture. But most importantly, I discovered a different way of living. I saw that people could speak freely. That they could disagree with the government without being afraid.
At the time, I was too young to understand what democracy really meant. But I could feel what freedom was. And I think this is something you never forget.
Ireland helped shape the person I became. It shaped my values and my European identity. Long before I knew anything about the European Union, I experienced European values through ordinary Irish people. Through a family that opened its home to a Belarusian girl. Through neighbors who treated me as one of their own.
For me, Europe began in Ireland. And Ireland taught me another important lesson. You can love your country, your language, and your traditions, and still be open to the world”.
