Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya thanked Poland for recognizing Belarusian diplomas, despite the denunciation of the relevant treaty by the regime. Alina Koushyk mentioned that 26 thousand Belarusian children are currently studying in Poland.
The parties discussed organizational and financial assistance to establish networks of Belarusian weekend schools with an additional component teaching Belarusian language, culture, history, and geography to children of Belarusians who have been forced to leave Belarus. Such schools, located in towns where most Belarusians live, could counteract the regime’s Russia-backed policy of Russification and destruction of national identity. Initially, the network could cover about 10-15 schools in provincial towns in Poland and employ Belarusian teachers whose employment in Belarus is hindered by the regime.
The question was raised about allowing students from Belarus to attend classes in the Belarusian language, which the Polish law allows only for children with Polish citizenship. Currently, members of the Belarusian national minority with Polish citizenship have access to lessons in Belarusian, while children without the citizenship can't attend such lessons.
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya raised the issue of support for Belarusian students, including additional funding for the Kalinowski program to increase enrolment in universities, more Belarusian studies departments in Polish universities, as well as support for Belarusian teachers.
Ms. Tsikhanouskaya thanked the Minister for his strategic support of the Free Belarusian University project (headed by Aliaksandr Milinkevich), whose courses are aimed at training managers for reforms and transformation of the future Belarus and strengthening the Belarusian identity.
Pavel Latushka spoke about the Personnel Reserve for the New Belarus project and the training of new elites based on the European experience in the following fields:
– public finance and budgeting;
– corporate and project management;
– social systems and social policy;
– national security;
– European integration
Internships in the Ministry of Education, provincial and county departments of education in Poland to pass on the experience and skills to Belarusians.
At the end of the meeting, they discussed forming a working group for education within the Ministry of Education and Science involving the United Transitional Cabinet.
