Six years of protests in Belarus – join our #MakeBelarusVisible flash mob!
Six years after the peaceful protests in Belarus and their brutal suppression, we are drawing attention to the new wave of repression against students.
This week marks the sixth anniversary of the peaceful pro-democracy protests in Belarus following the 2020 presidential election and the brutal repression of the demonstrators that followed. Even today, the regime continues to find new ways to punish those who dared to dream of a different future six years ago. You do not even have to live in Belarus to become a target. This year, we want to draw your attention and that of civil society to a new and acute wave of repression in Belarus – and to how it affects Belarusians abroad.
After 2020, thousands of young people left Belarus in search of safety, freedom and the opportunity to study without fear. Many found this opportunity at the European Humanities University (EHU) in Lithuania. Originally founded in Minsk, the university has provided an important place of refuge for Belarusian students in exile in Vilnius since 2005.
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But this summer, the Belarusian authorities launched a new wave of repression against EHU. The authorities designated the university as “extremist”, opened criminal cases, carried out house searches, threatened relatives and pressured students to return to Belarus. By 15 June, human rights defenders from Viasna had documented more than 60 searches of the homes of graduates, students and other people connected to the university, as well as their relatives. Even money transfers from parents to support their children’s studies were treated as alleged evidence of “extremist activities”.
To mark the anniversary of the Belarusian revolution and show that the repression has not stopped, we are calling on people to take part in our #MakeBelarusVisible campaign. Print one of our posters or display it on your screen, take a selfie, post it on social media and tag LIBERECO.
The repression is happening now. International attention can help prevent further persecution. This is not only an attack on one university. It is an attack on academic freedom, the right to education and the freedom to make independent choices without fear of persecution. Together, we can make the repression in Belarus visible.