Working visit to Slovenia:
From May 3 to 5, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya made a working visit to Slovenia. She had meetings with President Borut Pahor, Prime Minister Janez Janša, Foreign Minister Anže Logar, and Minister of Defence Matej Tonin.
As of 1 July, Slovenia will hold the European Union’s presidency and keep Belarus a priority. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya called for pressure on the regime, to hold the Eastern Partnership summit without Lukashenka and with the leaders of democratic Belarus.
Forcing the dialogue:
– Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya spoke at the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission hearing of the US Congress. Ms. Tsikhanouskaya called on the US to put maximum pressure on Lukashenka’s regime to stop the violence and release political prisoners and also proposed to host an international conference for Belarus’s crisis resolution. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya also called to discuss the crisis in Belarus at the G7 summit to be held in London.
– This week, the G7 countries called on official Minsk to organize a new presidential election under international supervision and release all those unjustly imprisoned. These demands are published in the G7 Communiqué adopted at the London MFA Summit.
– Ahead of Foreign Affairs Council meeting, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya sent a letter to Foreign Ministers of 27 EU countries calling to announce the Comprehensive Plan for Belarus, to hold an international conference to resolve the crisis in Belarus, and to impose sanctions against the regime’s representatives. On the part of the EU, there is a decision in principle to introduce the fourth package of sanctions.
– On behalf of 10 Belarusians, four German lawyers filed a criminal complaint with the Office of the Federal Public Prosecutor in Germany against Lukashenka for committing crimes against humanity in Belarus.
– Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya signed the Memorandum of the Belarusian Society, the Coordination Council, and the Democratic Forces in Defence of the Sovereignty and Independence of Belarus.
– Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya spoke at the conference of the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania on freedom of speech under authoritarianism in Belarus: “Belarus has become the most dangerous country in Europe for journalists”.
– The day before, on May 9, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas sent a letter to Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya. In the letter, Minister Maas supported Belarusians: “History teaches us how important the protection of democracy and human rights is for preserving peace and freedom in Europe. Therefore Germany and the European Union will always support you and the people of Belarus”.
– “Lukashenka has to defend himself”. Franak Viacorka told about the plans of the Office team for May-July 2021 in a video. It includes four priorities: pressure on the regime, preparation for negotiations, restoration of the rule of law, and international assistance to the Belarusians.
– Ales Aliakhnovich, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Representative for Economics, spoke about forecasts for the Belarusian economy against the background of other states and plans for economic reforms in the new Belarus.
– Anatoli Liabedzka, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Representative for the Constitutional Reform, met with Austria’s Ambassador to Belarus, Aloisia Wörgetter. They discussed constitutional reform in Belarus, the EU strategy for Belarus, and the facilitation of a new presidential election.
– Leader of democratic Belarus, in interviews with Belarusian and foreign media, spoke about the situation in Belarus, repressions, and work on facilitating negotiations:
- Germany: Bild (one, two).
- USA: Washington Post.
- EU: Euractive.
- Slovenia: RTV (one, two, tree), STA.sl (Slovenian Press Agency), newspaper Delo, Domovina.je, Zurnal24, Večer.
Support and mutual assistance:
– On May 9, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya congratulated Belarusians on Victory Day.
– Leader of democratic Belarus announced that in the new Belarus, the Commission of People’s Memory would be created – “the instrument is necessary to prevent the concealment of traces of these crimes, and to acknowledge all mistakes and never repeat them”.
– In the coming weeks, the EU will publish information on the Comprehensive Plan for Belarus, initiated and developed with the participation of Ms. Tsikhanouskaya.
– Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Representative on Economics is finalizing a draft program of assistance to those who have suffered from repressions for their protest. It will be submitted shortly.
– Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya called on the United Nations, OSCE, and PACE to launch a comprehensive program of support for independent media in Belarus.
– Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Representative on Education Olga Shparaga and her team have announced a support program for the French Maison des Sciences de l'Homme for researchers.
– In Belarus’s town Navaelny, instead of a salary, the administration issues certificates to a shop, and the Svetlagorsky Pulp and Paper Mill accounts are seized for debts. Information from “Spotlight of the Regions” of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Office – in brief infographics.
– Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya spoke at the Lev Kopelev Prize award ceremony together with the candidate for German Chancellor Armin Laschet. The prize was awarded to Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, Maryia Kalesnikava and Veranika Tsapkala.
– Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya made a call with members of the Belaruskali striking committee. They informed that the pressure on members is continuing, discussed support for the strikers and their families. The call was also made with activists of Minsk factories and the united strike of Naftan, BMZ, and Grodno Azot. They discussed the development of the labor movement and preparations for a national strike.
– Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya spoke at the opening of the House of Peace in Warsaw. The organizers of the shelter help the repressed Belarusians move and find work.
