Yesterday, May 23, the Law Faculty of the Belarusian State University published a video of a student forced to confess to “disseminating discrediting information” about the university administration and the regime's BRSM Youth Union. Kristina Rikhter, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya's Advisor on Legal Affairs, considers this a flagrant violation of fundamental rights underlying academia.
Kristina Rikhter: “Student days are a time of freedom, self-expression, and creativity, when young minds flourish, filling with ideas, dreams, and a desire to shape the world around them. But not in Lukashenka's Belarus.
In Lukashenka's Belarus, the idea of forced confession videos has gone beyond the regime's security bodies and police departments. Now you don't even have to follow “extremist” media, share “extremist” materials, or participate in protests. Just a negative attitude toward BRSM and a public statement about it is enough to end up on your university's Instagram page with a forced confession video.
Forcing a student to record a video is a flagrant violation of fundamental rights underlying academia. It violates freedom of expression and destroys the environment which could have fostered intellectual growth and research. By forcing students to record such videos, the regime is trying to silence their voices and prevent them from thinking critically. This is an insult to the very essence of being a student, when curiosity, independent thinking, and open dialogue should be valued and encouraged.
I hope the young man in the video is fine. I hope this experience will not silence him or stop him from thinking critically, asking questions, and seeking answers, even if the adults might not like them. The future of Belarus belongs to our young people, not to those who force them to record such videos.”
