“Dear Speaker Emerita Pelosi,
Zygis Pavilionis,
Dear Excellencies, Honourable Speakers,
Freedom fighters from all over the world,
Dear Friends of Free Belarus,
It is truly a remarkable and historical day. That the Kalinowski conference is taking place here in Washington D.C. in the building of U.S. Congress, the beating heart of American democracy.
If you say the name Kalinowski to a Belarusian you will see a fire light up in their eyes. It is because Kalinowski is the hero of Belarus. He is the symbol of our fight for freedom.
Kalinowski was just 25 when he led the uprising against Russia. Belarusians fought with great bravery and honour. But they were outnumbered. Kalinowski was captured and executed in Vilnius. Before they put him to death, he spoke these words:
“…go and fight … for your human and national rights, for your faith, for your native land. For I say to you from beneath the gallows, my people, you will only then live happily, when no Russian remains over you”
We keep Kalinowski in our hearts. Always. He taught us that independence, freedom and peace can never be separated. Only independent nations can be truly democratic.
160 years later, in 2020, Belarusians rose up again. It was a peaceful, non-violent uprising against the tyranny of dictator Lukashenka. We all remember the beautiful pictures of mass protests in Belarus, when hundreds of thousands took to the streets. We remember fearless women on the frontline, on our journey to victory.
But once again, our cry for freedom and democracy was stifled. It was Putin who helped Lukashenka to choke our uprising. Because Russia doesn’t want Belarus to be free and democratic. Helped by Putin, Lukashenka put tens of thousands in prisons. Hundreds of thousands were forced out of the country. Many have died. Many went underground…
Dear friends,
The fight for democracy is often romanticized. But, there is another, darker picture of our struggle because the path to democracy is paved with pain, tears, and suffering.
It’s hard to be optimistic when you know that in a lonely prison cell one of your friends is being tortured by the KGB, whilst another is facing the death penalty.
It’s hard to stay optimistic when your friends are fleeing the country they love. And it’s hard to stay optimistic when you have to explain to your kids that their daddy is sentenced to 18 years of prison just because he challenged the dictator.
Yes, it's hard. But this hardship will not stop us from doing the right thing.
These hardships are my motivation. Every morning, when I wake up, I think about those in prison and ask myself: what can I do today to help free them? What can I do to stop tyranny and make my people free?
Today, I want to share some lessons I learned in last two years:
- Lesson number one. Dictatorship is contagious. It is like cancer – unless you cut out every last cell it will return and kill everything. Tyrants learn from each other. Lukashenka’s regime has been the laboratory for Putin’s Russia. They tested their evil repressions upon us, the ordinary people.
- Lesson number two: Tyrants can not be appeased or re-educated. If we try to make a deal with them, they laugh in our face and clamp down even harder. They only understand the language of force. Democracies must show their teeth.
- Lesson number three. Our fight is a global fight. We cannot win alone. Democracy wins when we have each other’s backs, and stand together to confront tyranny. If we let dictators terrorise their people, they will go on to threaten their neighbours and pretty soon the whole world.
After crushing democratic protests, Lukashenka went on to hijack a civilian airliner. Then he created a migrant crisis on our borders with Poland and Lithuania. Then he handed over the keys to our country, allowing Putin to use Belarus as a launch pad for the war against Ukraine.
Dear excellencies,
The fates of Belarus and Ukraine are interconnected. The victory of Ukraine will give Belarus the opportunity for freedom. But also vice versa: democratic change in Belarus will help Ukraine. It will be the strongest sanction against Putin.
In fighting tyranny, there is no silver bullet. You need a set of different tools to win. Lukashenka’s dictatorship is like a chair with three legs: Repression, Money, and Russia. When one leg falls off, the chair collapses.
- First, we have to starve the regime of money and resources. Sanctions do work, but they must be monitored and enforced. All loopholes should be shut. We should name and shame all international businesses and governments who still do business with the regime. The US should explore the use of secondary sanctions toa identify and block the regime’s assets abroad.
- Second, we should support the people who fight the regime. Despite massive repressions, the resistance inside Belarus. Our partisans sabotage Russian trains, planes and military equipment. Cyber partisans hack state institutions and attack the regimes propaganda. And Belarusian volunteer units are fighting on the frontline in Ukraine. We want them to win. We need them to win.
- Third, we must bring perpetrators to justice. We welcome the decision of the ICC to issue the arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin. But let’s not forget Lukashenka, who also shares responsibility for crimes against humanity and crimes of aggression. We should identify the working mechanism within international organizations and beyond, that can help us to restore justice in Belarus and Ukraine.
- Fourth, we need to make sure that after dictatorship has fallen, it will never rise up again. We need the new Marshall plan. As you did in 1945, you can help rebuild our economies, and our countries. To win a war without securing the peace is to leave the door open for a new conflict. Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, together with Ukraine, must be part of this solution, and this work must begin now. Belarus must join the European family of nations, to become a trusted friend and ally in the democratic world.
- Finally, we expect the United States Congress and President Biden to become champions in global fight against tyranny. We see the role of the United States in defending the independence of Belarus and Ukraine and to build the unity of democratic states around this cause. It is important for us to have a coordinated strategy between EU, US, UK and Canada.
Ladies and gentlemen,
And we know that the question of Ukraine's victory in this war – is not “if” but “when”. When this victory comes – it will be a victory for democracies throughout the world. And getting rid of the dictator in Belarus will be the final victory for democracy in Europe.
Belarusians have already made their choice and continue to show courage every day in the fight for freedom and democracy. Just as Kalinowski did 160 years ago, we must confront tyranny even when it is hard to see the light of justice at the end of the tunnel.
We must remain true to our values of freedom and democracy. We must act courageously to win this great fight. Help us to win our countries back.
Thank you”.
