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  • Admittance of Belarusians to Estonian universities, Tsikhanouskaya’s speeches at the OSCE and in Brussels, Native Language Day address, and the anniversary of the war. Results of the work of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and her Office for February 20-25, 2023

    February 25, 2023
    • On February 22, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and representatives of her office held personal conversations with Belarusians. Most of the calls were from Belarus and the questions were about the war, visas, new passports, and the relationship between Lukashenka and Putin.
    • On Native Language Day, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya addressed Belarusians, urging them to use the Belarusian language more often: “I am glad to see that more and more Belarusians are discussing interviews by Melkaziorau, analytics by Chaly or Shraibman — not their Russian colleagues. More and more Belarusians are playing Naviband, Nizkiz, and Volsky in their cars. More and more Belarusians are watching our movies and reading our books – not Russian ones…the Belarusian language has also become a way of our resistance.”
    • Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya spoke in Brussels at the European Social and Economic Committee. She called for supporting exiled Belarusian businesses, defending Belarusian independence, and including democratic Belarus in the Eastern Partnership.
    • For the first time, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya was invited to the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, where she gave a speech: “A free Belarus will be the strongest protection against Putin.” Lukashenka's Mp Savinykh attempted to disrupt Tihanovskaya's speech before the OSCE PA but was only supported by Russia. The Belarusian leader also addressed 38 OSCE ambassadors, calling for them to join the international coalition for an independent and democratic Belarus.
    • Between meetings at the OSCE, Ms. Tsikhanouskaya held meetings with the government and parliament of Austria. With the Minister of Justice, they agreed to organize training for Belarusian lawyers and human rights defenders, as well as to consult with other EU justice ministers on the establishment of cases under universal jurisdiction and in international courts. Following parliamentary meetings with deputies and the speaker, a group of Friends of Democratic Belarus will be created in the Austrian parliament, and hearings will be held.
    • A delegation of Belarus took part in the 10th session of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly in Chisinau, to which Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya addressed a welcome message in an online format. She stated that Belarus remains in the Eastern Partnership, regardless of Lukashenka's decisions, and called for inviting representatives of Belarusian democratic forces, not the regime, in the future.
    • Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya addressed Belarusians and Ukrainians on the occasion of the anniversary of the war. She responded to Lukashenka's words that the war was inevitable and thanked Belarusians from more than 27 countries for joining anti-war protests on February 24th.
    • On the same day, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya joined a Ukrainian rally in Vienna, which also included many Belarusians with white-red-white flags, and visited the Permanent Mission of Ukraine to the OSCE, where she met with Mykyta Poturayev, Chair of the Committee on Humanitarian & Information Policy in Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada.
    • On February 23, Cabinet Representative for Social Issues Volha Harbunova held a Zoom meeting with volunteers of the Office. Volha talked about the work to support political prisoners, which is currently underway, and explained how Belarusians can support these efforts.
    • Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya welcomed the new Estonian special envoy who arrived in Vilnius to work with democratic Belarus.
    • Representative of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya's Office, Vitali Malchanau, held a meeting in Estonia with representatives of the University of Tartu. Following the meeting, the universities of Tartu and Tallinn announced that they will resume admission of Belarusian students. 
    • Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya's advisor on education and science, Tatiana Shchyttsova, took part in a meeting of the working group about the “roadmap” on the transition period in school and higher education institutions. The Office's education team also released the February issue of the Asveta digest, which covers new international support programs for Belarusian students and researchers.
    • On the occasion of the 1000th day of Siarhei Tsikhanouski's arrest, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya reinforced the United Transitional Cabinet's commitment to exploring all possible ways to secure the release of political prisoners. Siarhei Tsikhanouski and all political prisoners must be released.
    • Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya gave interviews to Belarusian and international media: Newsweek (UK), DW News, DW (Belarus), Delfi (Estonia), Belsat (Belarus).

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