Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya commented on the high school exam scoring malfunction and the regime’s denial of it
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya: “I know very well how much effort children put into successfully passing the school-leaving exams, which were reformed this year. It involves sleepless nights, textbooks and study materials every day, tutors, and additional classes at school. And now the graduates have encountered the very essence of the system – the National Institute for […]
May 30, 2023
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya spoke at the GLOBSEC forum in Bratislava
In her speech, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya called on the international community to vigorously defend democratic values and support Belarus and Ukraine. She noted that Ukraine is fighting both for its territory and values shared by all democratic countries. She noted that it is crucial to be prepared for a new window of opportunities once it opens. […]
May 30, 2023
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya held a meeting with the Foreign Minister of North Macedonia, current OSCE Chair
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and Bujar Osmani discussed the crisis faced by the OSCE as a result of the disruptive behavior of the Lukashenka regime and Russia. Earlier, the official delegations of Minsk and Russia had blocked Estonia's chairmanship in the organization. They discussed the findings of the Moscow Mechanism report and further steps for its implementation, […]
May 30, 2023
GLOBSEC Forum and meeting with the President. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya begins her visit to Slovakia
On May 29-30, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya will be in Bratislava to speak at the GLOBSEC Forum. The forum will also be attended by the President of France, the President of the European Commission, the President of the European Parliament, the Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine, the Prime Minister of Lithuania, and other international leaders. At the […]
May 29, 2023
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya on the 3rd anniversary of Siarhei’s detention: “Belarusians are the reason I keep holding on”
“Over the three years that we have been apart, I visited so many countries that I couldn't even imagine before. In fact, though, I dream of coming back home and living with Siarhei and our kids in a free Belarus. For all these three years, I've played it cool when asked about the dearest person […]
May 29, 2023
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s speech at the Kyiv Security Forum, 2023
“Ladies and gentlemen, Let me thank our Ukrainian friends for inviting me, as the representative of democratic Belarus, to discuss the future of our region’s security. We must ensure that the voice of Belarusians in preserving our national interests is heard – to more effectively fight dictators and to prepare for the post-war settlement. Since […]
May 26, 2023
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya welcomed Iceland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Thórdís Kolbrún Reykfjörd Gylfadóttir, in her office in Vilnius
On May 25, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iceland visited Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya's office in Vilnius. During the meeting, they discussed the outcomes of the Council of Europe Summit held in Reykjavik and further action. They agreed to continue cooperation within the framework of the Council of Europe and the United Nations and talked about […]
May 26, 2023
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya: “With no intervention from parents, the regime might make our children future propagandists and policemen”
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya: “Dear parents, teachers, and graduates. I would like to address you on the occasion of the academic year ending. I think you know very well that education in Belarus has always been a field for experiments and novelties. For example, parents of today’s schoolchildren used to attend “zero” grade because the government replaced […]
May 26, 2023
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya on nuclear weapons: “The future of Belarus and whether our children can live in it depends on us”
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya: “The stationing of nuclear weapons in our country will strengthen Russia's control over Belarus, which is already enormous. It will require tremendous efforts to abandon these weapons, as they may become a subject of bargaining and aggression on Russia’s end. And Belarusians will have to deal with the consequences for years. Therefore, we […]
May 25, 2023
Valery Kavaleuski: “The stationing of nuclear weapons is an ostensible threat to the independence of Belarus”
Valery Kavaleuski, Deputy Head of the United Transitional Cabinet and its Representative for Foreign Affairs, commented on the reports of Russia’s and Lukashenka’s defense ministers endorsing documents formalizing storage of Russian non-strategic nuclear weapons in Belarus. Valery Kavaleuski: “Lukashenka's Defense Minister Khrenin and Russia’s Shoigu took another step toward the stationing of nuclear weapons on […]
May 25, 2023
Kristina Rikhter: “The future of Belarus belongs to its young people, not to those who force them to record confession videos”
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 […]
May 24, 2023
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya at the NATO Parliamentary Assembly Spring Session: strategy for political prisoners release, action against nuclear weapons stationing in Belarus, accountability for the regime
During the NATO Parliamentary Assembly Spring Session in Luxembourg, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya met with parliamentary delegations from Canada, Italy, Luxembourg, Portugal, and the United Kingdom. All meetings focused on the strategy for countering the stationing of nuclear weapons in Belarus, achieving the release of political prisoners, and responding to the regime's involvement in the displacement of […]
May 23, 2023
Kristina Rikhter: “We know the methods the regime uses to make conditions unbearable for political prisoners. It is in the best interest of the prison authorities to put an end to their incommunicado detention”
The legal team of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya's Office has prepared a detailed analysis of how prison administrations constrain the basic rights of political prisoners on top of depriving them of liberty. The report explains the trickery the regime uses to maximize the harm to people. We are in fact witnessing a systematic government policy of increasing […]
May 22, 2023
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya: “I want to thank all of you who have joined the Day of Solidarity with Political Prisoners today”
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya: “I want to thank all of you who have joined the Day of Solidarity with Political Prisoners today. I thank each and every one of you who participated in rallies, wrote letters, made donations, changed your profile pictures on social media, or posted about our heroes. You are the voice of our political […]
May 21, 2023
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s speech at the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Luxembourg, 2023
«Dear Mr. Congressman Boyle, Dear Mr. Minister Tom Köller, Dear friends, It is a big honor to address you today on behalf of all Belarusians, who despite fear and repression, continue fighting for their freedom and independence. Our fight is our common fight. It is the fight against the evil past, against tyranny, and Russian […]
May 21, 2023
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya invited Belarusians and foreigners to join events, rallies, and activities for the Day of Solidarity with Political Prisoners on May 21
Belarusian initiatives have prepared activities and events for the Day of Solidarity with Political Prisoners in Belarus on May 21. The Belarusian Students’ Association, RADA and Viasna, ByProsvet, Razam, Belarusian Council for Culture, White Coats, Ecodom, and other projects will hold live streams, fundraisers, movie screenings, and more. Belarusians will hold rallies all over the […]
May 20, 2023
Digest of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Office on Education and Science, April 2023
Please send information about everything related to education in Belarus to our secure and anonymous chatbot @eduOST_bot. Tell us the news from your educational institution or government department regarding repression and various forms of pressure from authorities, write to us about facts of corruption and new orders that seem unreasonable or irrational to you. We also […]
May 19, 2023
Parliamentary groups For Democratic Belarus may be formed soon in Estonia and Latvia
A Belarusian delegation has been taking part in the Baltic Assembly events in Tallinn these days. Anatoli Liabedzka, Advisor to Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya for Interparliamentary Cooperation, spoke on the outcomes of the talks: “A group For Democratic Belarus will be established in the Estonian Parliament. We spoke with representatives of four factions, which all turned out […]
May 19, 2023
Kristina Rikhter: “The Council of Europe acknowledged the fact of the unlawful deportation of Ukrainian children to Belarus”
Kristina Rikhter: “The Council of Europe acknowledged the fact of the unlawful deportation of Ukrainian children to Belarus. This was a result of the collaborative efforts and productive work of Belarus’ democratic forces. The deportation of Ukrainian children from the Russia-occupied territories to Belarus without individual medical reasons and written consent of competent authorities is […]
May 19, 2023
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya: “The regime deprives political prisoners of communication with the outside, assuming the whole world will forget about them. But we will never let this happen”
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya: “In the past weeks, many have been busy discussing the disappearance of Lukashenka, his health, and missing reports about him. But remember how long we have had no reports about many political prisoners. It has been 23 days now since the last reports of Viktar Babaryka’s whereabouts and health. It has been 100 […]
May 19, 2023
Results of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s second day at the Reykjavik Council of Europe Summit
On the second day of the Council of Europe Summit, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya joined the CoE plenary session and met with the Prime Minister of Portugal, President of Finland, Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iceland, and President of the Conference of International Non-Governmental Organisations […]
May 18, 2023
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya at the PACE Summit: “We embark on our path towards Belarus’s accession to the Council of Europe”
“For the first time, Belarus has its own voice in the Council of Europe. It is here and now that we begin our journey toward Belarus's accession to the Council of Europe. It will take a lot of time. To achieve full membership, we need to restore democracy in Belarus, abolish the death penalty, and […]
May 18, 2023
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and Secretary General of the Council of Europe discussed joint work and tribunal for Lukashenka
The meeting discussed further steps for the inclusion of Belarus’ democratic community in the Council of Europe and its individual programs. The next meeting of the Contact Group is scheduled for June. A project in support of independent journalists has already been implemented within its framework. In the near future, the group will hold events […]
May 17, 2023
Support for businesses and IT sector, sanctions on potash exports. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya met with Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa
António Costa and Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya discussed the operational environment for Belarusian businesses and representatives of the IT sector who have relocated to Portugal. They agreed to hold a meeting with representatives of these companies in autumn to discuss and improve the environment. The conversation mostly focused on potash fertilizers and their export to third countries. […]
May 17, 2023
Aid to Belarusian refugees, tribunal for Lukashenka, defending Belarus from Russian absorption. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya met with the President of PACE
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya met with the Parliamentary Assembly of Council of Europe President Tiny Kox during the CoE Summit in Reykjavik. He invited Ms. Tsikhanouskaya to speak at the PACE plenary session in June, which will feature a presentation of the report on the situation of Belarusian refugees. The document estimates that 200 thousand to 500 […]
May 17, 2023
Results of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s first day at the Reykjavik Council of Europe Summit
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya took part in the opening of the Council of Europe Summit held in Reykjavik. Her presence at the summit affirms that the Council of Europe recognizes Belarus’ democratic forces as legitimate representatives of the country. She held sideline discussions with the President of the Czech Republic, Petr Pavel, Head of the European Council, Charles […]
May 17, 2023
Sviatlana Tsikahnouskaya arrived in Reykjavik to attend the Council of Europe Summit on May 16-17
Although Belarus is not a member of the Council of Europe, the organization made an exception and invited Ms. Tsikhanouskaya as a special guest. The Summit may be the key Council of Europe meeting of the decade as the previous one was held in Warsaw in 2005. Heads or representatives of 46 states are expected […]
May 16, 2023
“I envision a Belarus where the principles upheld by the Council of Europe are not distant ideals but everyday realities”. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s speech at the PACE Standing Committee meeting in Reykjavik, 2023
“President Kox, Madame Prime Minister, Madame Minister,
Dear Members of the Standing Committee, Dear friends, Today, I came to you with a very simple message from Belarusians: be the voice of those who can’t speak now. Last week, I had a call with a Belarusian woman. Her daughter and her son are both in Lukashenka’s […]
May 16, 2023
Sviatlana Tsikahnouskaya met with the Speaker of the Danish parliament and MPs for foreign affairs
Yesterday, May 15, Sviatlana Tsikahnouskaya paid a short visit to Denmark, where she met with Denmark’s parliamentary leadership and British MP and former prime minister Liz Truss. She also spoke at the Copenhagen Democracy Summit and gave interviews to Danish and international media. During the meeting, Danish MPs and Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya discussed support for Belarus. […]
May 16, 2023