Debate: Formal sitting – Address by Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya
Date: WEDNESDAY, 13 SEPTEMBER 2023
Speaker: Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya
Language: EN

Madam President Metsola, dear Roberta, distinguished Members of the European Parliament, when I was here two years ago, I spoke about tyranny as a virus – a virus that will not be contained by borders. And the past two years have shown that the virus of tyranny can mutate into the deadly cancer of war. Unlike the war in Ukraine, ours is a quiet war. The goal of the Kremlin in this war is the same as in Ukraine: to turn a sovereign country – Belarus – into yet another servile Russian colony. And Putin is not doing this alone. He is doing it in collaboration with Lukashenka, who is selling our country and selling our independence piece by piece. Quietly, they are tightening their grip on our economy, our military, our institutions. Quietly, they destroy our civil society, political parties, media. Quietly, they eradicate our national identity. Their goal is clear: to absorb and assimilate. They cut all links to our values, history and culture – anything that anchors us to Europe. Their ultimate goal is to prevent Belarus from becoming a truly European democratic nation. To keep an open wound at the heart of the European continent, so that Europe, too, cannot become whole and free and at peace. But they will fail. The terror they unleashed against Belarusians has made us even more determined. No tyranny, KGB or Wagner thugs can kill the desire for freedom in Belarus. Brave Belarusians demonstrate true heroism and enduring resilience. In this quiet war, there are many quiet heroes. Heroes like Dzmitry Klimau. When Russians tried to make a shortcut to Kyiv from Belarus, he destroyed railway equipment by halting trains loaded with Russian tanks. And what did the KGB do? They arrested him and put bullets through his knees. Dzmitry and 11 other ‘railway partisans’ were sentenced to a total of 200 years in prison. Heroes like Marfa Rabkova, who volunteered for Viasna, a human rights organisation led by Ales Bialiatski, our Nobel Prize laureate behind bars. Marfa was sentenced to 15 years of prison for documenting the atrocities of the regime. Many quiet heroes are carrying out small acts of defiance: in factories and ministries, in the schools and in the army. Teachers who refuse to instruct children in ‘state ideology’. Honest officers who leak valuable information. Businessmen who secretly donate to families of the repressed. Heroes like our pensioners. You know, recently, a few grannies called me to say that they quietly gather to read ‘extremist’ media together. They also asked me: ‘Tell Europeans that we haven’t given up’. Even speaking the Belarusian language today is an act of heroism. The museum worker who conducted tours in Belarusian language was interrogated as if he was a terrorist. Our heroes are also countless Belarusians who lost their homes and well-paid jobs, and are now in exile helping Belarusian military volunteers in Ukraine. Heroes like Natallia Suslava, a university teacher from Homel, whose son Pavel ‘Volat’ gave his life fighting for Ukraine. She went there and became a caring mother to his brothers in arms. Our brave warriors fight because they know that the battle for Ukraine is a fight for the freedom of us all. Heroes like Ales Pushkin, a famous painter who raised the European Union flag in front of the police cordon. Later, he was arrested and accused of promoting Nazism. And now he is dead, murdered in prison in Hrodna. Today in this Chamber, I would like to honour the memory of all my compatriots who have lost their lives for the freedom of Belarus and Ukraine. These are our heroes: Belarusians, Europeans. Unfortunately, the war and repression became a part of our life. My seven-year-old daughter recently asked me to give her some money. I asked her what for, and can you imagine what she replied? ‘I want to buy a tank to free my daddy.’ Every week, she writes postcards to her father, though she doesn’t receive any answer. For me, she is my little hero. Her father, my husband Siarhei, was sentenced to 19 years and I haven’t had a word from him for six months already. And he is my big hero – the biggest in my life. Dear ladies and gentlemen, tyrants want to see the European Union as a decadent house of cards ready to collapse. But for us, Europe is home and a family. And we, Belarusians – just like Ukrainians or Moldovans and other freedom-loving countries – want to be part of that family, too. We want to return home, back to Europe. You know, Europe is in our DNA. From Francysk Skaryna, who brought the European Renaissance to Belarus, to Mark Chagall, who brought his unique vision from Belarus to Europe. We chose Europe centuries ago. And we reconfirmed this choice in 2020. You know, sometimes I can hear people say: ‘How come that in 2020 there were no European flags at the protests?’ Of course they were there! Our national white-red-white flag is a European flag. These colours symbolise freedom, our European past and our European future. Europe is where we come from and it is where we are heading. One month ago, Belarusian democratic forces passed a joint declaration defining our strategic objective: Belarus’s membership of the European Union. I know it will take time. I know it will not be easy. But there is no way back for us – the European Union is our ultimate destination, period. When I see all these beautiful flags, I can imagine how proud you feel seeing yours among others. And I wish, one day, to see our white-red-white flag here as well. I wish to see democratically elected representatives of Belarus sitting in this room. And I want the Belarusian language, which suffered so much through centuries of Russian domination, to become one of the EU’s official languages. Without Belarus and Ukraine, the European project will not be completed. The European Union – from Lisbon to Minsk — is a nightmare for Putin. But for us, it’s a reality we thrive to live in. Belarus and Ukraine in the European Union will lead to the ultimate collapse of the evil empire, once and for all. Dear friends, I came here to the European Parliament to ask you to support the European perspective for Belarus. Belarusians want to hear from you that the EU is waiting for us. Belarusians want to hear that our country will not be given to Putin as a consolation prize. So I urge you to support the resolution introduced by Petras Auštrevičius that highlights the European aspirations of Belarusians. I propose to take the relationship between Democratic Belarus and the European Parliament to a new level and institutionalise our cooperation. I am confident that we can do it before the upcoming EP elections. Hundreds of thousands of my fellow citizens had to flee repression. Hundreds of thousands found a safe haven across the European Union, and now also contribute to the welfare and prosperity of your countries. I would like to thank all countries – especially Poland, Lithuania and Latvia – who, against all odds, opened their arms and issued life-saving visas and permits to fleeing Belarusians. PACE prepared an excellent report on the migration challenges Belarusians are facing. I call on all European states to follow the recommendations of this resolution. Now the situation is going to become worse. Last week, Lukashenka signed a decree to deny passports and property rights to Belarusians abroad unless they return to Belarus. It puts at risk the legal status of hundreds of thousands of people. We need a quick and lasting solution that will allow them to stay safe. And now we are working to start issuing national Belarusian passports. We are grateful to your governments and experts in the European Commission for their advice on this matter. This document will confirm Belarusian citizenship and will serve as a travel document for exiled Belarusians. Actually, here we are taking lessons from the Baltic states who were issuing their passports in exile during the Soviet occupation. Very soon, we will come to your governments asking to recognise our new passports. Let’s not stop putting pressure on dictators. Sanctions must not have loopholes or derogations. We are dealing with professional thugs who abuse the rules and institutions. And finally, help us to bring Lukashenka to account. Murdering opponents by death squad, the torture of peaceful protesters, the abduction of Ukrainian kids, launching a quiet war against Belarusians and collaboration in the war against Ukraine: he has a long record of crimes. He doesn’t deserve any place in international fora. The only thing he deserves is a one-way ticket to The Hague. And I really wonder how some people still dare to call him President? Let me make it clear: he is a fraud! Belarusians hate lies. We hate dictatorship. We Belarusians love freedom and we are Europe. Dear Members of the European Parliament, I want to thank each of you and your political groups for your support and solidarity. I know and I feel how strongly you stand for our cause. Especially, I want to thank my close friend Roberta: your leadership and your dedication to free Belarus inspires me and sets an example for others. The great European Václav Havel once said: ‘I believe that the future of Belarus is closely connected with the future of Europe. And the future of Europe is connected with the future of democratic and independent Belarus. I do believe that one day we will welcome Belarus into the European Union’. So let’s make this come true!