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  • Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s speech at the Romanian Parliament in Bucharest, 2022

    November 28, 2022

    “Ladies and gentlemen, 
    Dear excellencies, friends,

    I'm glad to be here today and to address you on behalf of my fellow Belarusians. Especially at such a decisive moment in European history – I know we all feel a great responsibility for our nations, and for our future. 

    Let me start by saying thank you for your support.

    The Romanian people have repeatedly demonstrated its love of democratic values. Not only in words but in deeds. And I want you to know that with those deeds you set an example for all other democratic states. For Belarusians, you set a particularly inspiring example. Off a country that got rid of dictatorship and built a stable and enduring democracy.

    We look to you and believe that we too will succeed.

    Yesterday, I had a chance to visit the most significant places of the Romanian revolution. I laid flowers at the monument in memory of all those who died in the name of freedom of your country. I also feel the symbolism of meeting here today in this building. It reminds us that all dictatorships seem invincible. Until suddenly they are defeated. 

    I am grateful that Romania has supported the democratic protests in Belarus. And during our political crisis the Romanian government extended its helping hand to Belarusians. Romania opened a scholarship program for Belarusian students, and supported Belarusian media and human rights defenders. It was Romania who proposed the EU to initiate the macro aid package for democratic Belarus and to initiate European solidarity for our country. 

    During these difficult years, Romania has proved to be a great friend of Belarus. It warms our hearts to have such great friends as you. 

    Dear friends,

    Let me briefly describe the current situation in Belarus.

    It may seem that the situation inside our country has not changed over the past two years. But that is not true. It changes every day. Sadly it changes for the worse. The mass terror that started in 2020 paved the way for Putin’s invasion of Ukraine from Belarus territory. Belarusian people have been taken hostage by two crazy dictators. 

    But while attention is now on Ukraine, mass terror continues in Belarus. Even for small acts of resistance, dozens of people are detained every day. Dozens are dragged out of their homes in their underwear to be mocked. In police stations and detention centers they are beaten and humiliated. 

    After beatings and torture, the KGB record videos of detainees and post them online. On these videos, Belarusians are forced to read on camera a scripted apology. In an attempt to scare people and pacify the anti-war resistance.

    The security forces of Lukashenka's regime know no shame. They act like a terrorist organisation.

    The number of officially recognized political prisoners is now close to one and a half thousand. But it should be understood that the real figure is much higher. People are put in solitary confinement or sent to forced labor camps. They are deprived of any communication with their families. 

    Among them is my husband Siarhei, sentenced to 18 years. For 2,5 years my children have not seen him, and they ask me if their daddy is still alive. Every weekend they write postcards to him, but rarely do these postcards reach him. 

    The dictator and his puppets must not get away with such crimes. For every broken life of a free Belarusian, for every act of torture – they must be held accountable.

    We must not allow them to feel free to terrorize our citizens. After such a brutal crackdown on peaceful protests they feel they are immune to the consequences.  And now they are terrorizing not only the Belarusian people, but also our neighbors.

    The plane hijacking and the migration crisis that Lukashenka staged on the border with Europe showed – that tyrants will stop at nothing to maintain their power. They will not stop if we simply ask them to. They will not stop until we force them.

    In order to maintain his power, Lukashenko made a deal with Putin. Now we see the result of this arrangement. Rockets fly from the territory of Belarus to Ukraine. Belarusians found themselves under pressure not only from Lukashenka's repressive machine, but from a de facto Russian occupation. Lukashenka betrayed the national interest of our people, trading our sovereignty – the most valuable thing any nation has.

    Belarusians made their choice clear in 2020 and terminated the contract with the tyrant. After the start of the war, the Belarusians made their choice again, uniting in support of the Ukrainian people. Belarusians are well aware that we share a common enemy with Ukraine. And they are doing everything to resist this enemy, risking their own freedom, security, and sometimes their own lives.

    Today the challenge of the entire democratic world is to help Belarus and Ukraine, to support our common struggle for freedom and independence. After all, today we are all in the same boat. The security of all Europe depends on the outcome of this war. And how long this war will last, and most importantly, how it will end, – depends also on the solution of the political crisis in Belarus.

    I assure you that there will be no better help for the Ukrainian people than a 1,000-kilometer border with a free democratic Belarus. 

    We must offer the maximum resistance. Appeasement won't work anymore. It has only ever given a free hand to tyrants. Our task is the opposite. We must handcuff these criminals' hands. We must show that they cannot escape responsibility.

    I invite you to be a part of it. 

    I urge you to support the creation of an international tribunal not only against Putin, but also against Lukashenka. Every crime should be counted and investigated – both crimes against humanity in Belarus, and war crimes in Ukraine. We all know Lukashenka is as guilty of those crimes as the Russian government. 

    I also ask you to support the struggle of the Belarusian people and prevent the loss of the sovereignty of Belarus. We see how, taking advantage of the level of repression in Belarusian society, Russia is conducting a creeping occupation of our country. We must not allow this to continue.

    We demand an immediate and unconditional withdrawal of Russian troops from the territory of Belarus. Any agreements between Lukashenka and Putin after 2020 should be declared invalid. And the regime should be excluded from any contact with the free world, because it does not represent the interests of the Belarusian people anymore.

    Instead of contacts with this illegitimate regime, I invite you to establish working relations with the democratic forces of Belarus. First of all, with  the United Transition Cabinet, whose main task today is to resist the occupation and protect the sovereignty of Belarus. Together I know we will be able to effectively resist imperial expansion. And in the end, only together can we defeat this barbaric regime.

    In support of our struggle for freedom and for our country, we ask you to increase your assistance to civil society. Support Belarusian independent media who are forced to work abroad. Provide help to Belarusian human rights activists, cultural and professional associations, political prisoners and their families. 

    On the parliamentary level, I ask you to make resolutions to stand with democracy in Belarus and support its independence movement. I ask to organize a hearing on Belarus crisis in foreign affairs committees. Also to recognize Lukashenka’s regime as a sponsor of terrorism, and put on the sanctions list not only military officials, but propagandists, businesses who enable the war.

    I propose that you establish a group of friends in the Romanian Parliament, as we have in many European countries and the United States. I ask each of you to adopt political prisoner, support their families, and tell their stories in your media.

    Believe me, your support will not only be a goodwill gesture for the Belarusians, but an investment in the peaceful and democratic future of Europe.

    Dear friends,

    I have to say, I am inspired by how the democratic world today has rallied in support of democracy and freedom. I admire how Romania persistently and boldly defends our common values by helping the peoples of both Belarus and Ukraine. By providing help to Moldova, which, like Ukraine, was left without light by the crimes of two dictators.

    Today, the stakes are raised to the maximum. It’s either us or them: either tyranny or democracy, freedom or oppression. It may be the last chance for Belarus to take back our home. It may be the last chance for Ukraine. It may be the last chance for all of us. So today not only Belarus and Ukraine, but all of us, every politician, every party and every state, – must unite all efforts and use this chance to build a peaceful and democratic future of Europe. 

    Thank you!”

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