NON-RECOGNITION OF THE “ELECTION”
Another so-called “election” took place in Belarus, with Lukashenka being “re-elected”. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Office compiled a list of countries and international organizations that have officially rejected the sham campaign.
PARTICIPATION IN THE WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya participated in the World Economic Forum in Davos, meeting with the President of Latvia, Edgars Rinkēvičs, former Prime Minister of Finland, Sanna Marin, Minister of Foreign Affairs of France, Jean-Noël Barrot, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Chile, Alberto van Klaveren, Japanese MP Yuichiro Tamaki, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Finland, Elina Valtonen, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Portugal, Paulo Rangel, NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte, and Wikipedia founder, Jimmy Wales.
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya also took part in the “Peace through Strength” discussion and spoke at the “Future of Belarus” event.
“BELARUSIANS DESERVE BETTER” FORUM
On January 26, the Belarusian diaspora in Warsaw hosted a march to protest against the so-called “election”. The “Belarusians Deserve Better” Forum took place on the same day in Warsaw. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya joined both the march and the forum, addressing the participants: “As long as we are united, we can overcome anything. We are all Belarusians. We will not lose heart. We will reclaim our country and return home”.
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION ON BELARUS
The European Parliament adopted a resolution condemning human rights violations and repression against civil society in Belarus, emphasizing that the Lukashenka regime is illegitimate, and declaring the 2025 election a sham.
POLISH SENATE RESOLUTION ON BELARUS
The Polish Senate passed a resolution focused on its non-recognition of the so-called “election” in Belarus. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Advisor on Constitutional Reform and Parliamentary Cooperation, Anatoli Liabedzka, commented on the resolution.
NEW BELARUSIAN PASSPORT
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Chief Advisor, Franak Viacorka, presented the New Belarusian Passport during the “Belarusians Deserve Better” Forum. Preliminary registration for the passport began on Sunday.
COORDINATION COUNCIL HEARING
On January 23, the Coordination Council held a parliamentary hearing to analyze Lukashenka’s criminal activities during his time in power. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, as the leader of Belarus’ democratic forces, delivered opening remarks.
DONALD TRUMP’S INAUGURATION
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya congratulated Donald Trump on his inauguration, emphasizing the need to deepen Belarusian-American ties and cooperation. She also released a statement, mentioning that US sanctions against the Lukashenka regime were first introduced during Trump’s 2017-2021 term.
MESSAGE TO CIVIL SERVANTS IN BELARUS
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Senior Political Advisor, Alexander Dabravolski, addressed civil servants in Belarus, offering guidance on how to act when pressured to go against the law and their conscience. He called for documenting violations and highlighted secure communication channels to share collected information with Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Office.
VANDALISM TARGETING EHU
Provocative inscriptions appeared recently on a European Humanities University building in Vilnius. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Advisor on Education and Science, Tatiana Shchyttsova, commented on this act of vandalism: “We condemn any actions aimed at undermining trust and the friendly relations between [Belarusian and Lithuanian] peoples”.
RALLIES AGAINST THE SHAM ELECTION IN BELARUS
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Office compiled a list of events held in different countries to protest against the sham election in Belarus and demonstrate solidarity with political prisoners.
NUMBER OF THE DAY
The #NumberOfTheDay project on Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s official social media accounts continued to share significant facts reflecting the reality in Belarus after 30 years of Lukashenka’s dictatorship.
NO DEBATES IN THE SHAM ELECTION
Alina Kharysava, an expert at Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Office, explained in a video why Lukashenka always avoids debates, emphasizing this as a clear sign of the lack of democratic norms in elections.
MEDIA
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s interviews and comments were featured this week in EUobserver (International), Le Figaro (France), Channel4 (the UK), Gazeta Wyborcza (Poland), Reuters (International), Sky Italy (Italy), Espreso (Ukraine), Polityka (Poland), ORF (Austria), Voice of America, Throw (the Netherlands), Sky TV (Italy), Deutschlandfunk (Germany), and AP News (International).