The release of more than 50 prisoners from Belarus, including several Western citizens, does not represent real freedom but amounts to forced deportation, Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya has said.
“Let’s be honest, what happened yesterday wasn’t real freedom. It was forced deportation,” said Tsikhanouskaya, who has lived in exile in Lithuania for several years.
Speaking in Vilnius on Friday, she thanked US President Donald Trump, White House envoy John Coale, the European Union, human rights groups and Lithuania for their role in the release.
“I especially thank Lithuania, which acted quickly to take in the released prisoners, issued documents and helped them at the border,” Tsikhanouskaya said.
The opposition leader pledged to continue working with Washington and European allies to press for the release of all political prisoners.
“This is a step in the right direction and I call on the regime to free all hostages from prisons. This must be the first step towards the national dialogue that the Belarusian people so urgently need,” she said.
She also noted that €85,000 had been raised on Thursday alone to support political prisoners.
Belarus freed 52 prisoners on Thursday, among them six Lithuanian citizens as well as Latvians, Poles, Britons, Germans, French nationals and Belarusians. However, not all chose to leave. Opposition veteran Mikalai Statkevich reportedly refused to cross the border, despite poor health.
According to activist Siarhei Sparysh, who was among those released, Statkevich suffered a heart attack, contracted Covid-19 and developed arrhythmia while in detention.
“Theoretically, he could already be dead, anything could happen to him now,” Sparysh said.
“Statkevich spoke about how Belarusians have formed as a nation, and now this nation needs to gain statehood. This requires a struggle. He also said that a leader is needed, who must be in the country. We must understand that a moral leader must be in the country, which is why Statkevich stayed in Belarus,” the activist added.
Sparysh urged the international community to press Alexander Lukashenko to ensure Statkevich’s release, claiming this had been agreed with President Trump.
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda confirmed the group of freed detainees included opposition activists, journalists and participants in protests. He stressed that their release had not been exchanged for the lifting of Western sanctions.
But at a meeting in Minsk, White House envoy John Coale announced that the US had lifted sanctions on Belarusian state airline Belavia, saying the decision had been taken personally by Trump. The White House later described the move as “limited relief”, allowing Belavia to service and purchase spare parts for its existing fleet, which includes Boeing aircraft.
Newsletter
Every Friday morning.
