Belarusian government in exile calls for support for "New Belarus" movement

Set up in August 2022 by Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the self-declared government in exile has opened more than 20 alternative embassies and information centres abroad.

Tsikhanouskaya, 40, a former English teacher who fled after running against Lukashenko in a 2020 vote critics called rigged, said the opposition would seek international recognition for the alternative passports.

Speaking at a hotel in Warsaw to several hundred activists, including independent media and civic groups, Tsikhanouskaya urged opposition forces abroad to unite and support the creation of a "New Belarus" movement.

"We are used to preparing for the worst. However, remember how many projects we have already planned with you. Even five years ago, they would have seemed impossible to us. But today they are part of the history of the new Belarus," she said.

"At this conference, we will talk about what the new Belarus should be, and how we can get there. What reforms should be implemented, and how to identify those who committed crimes. We will talk about the methods of our struggle and ways of supporting our political prisoners," Tsikhanouskaya added.

"Unfortunately, the past three years have taught us to always prepare for the worst. We are used to the fact that the strongest desire is not enough to change a rotten system," she said at the opposition's second annual gathering after last year's meeting in Lithuania.

"We are used to the fact that due to the regime's policy, our peaceful Belarus is today called an aggressor country - and put on the same level as Russia."

Russia used ally Belarus as a launchpad for its invasion of Ukraine.

Tsikhanouskaya said the opposition was organising initiatives to promote Belarusian-language theatre, book printing and education.

"This allows us to preserve our identity - and to pass on our national values to the new generation of Belarusians," Tsikhanouskaya said.

Russia has long been the de facto first language, with use of Belarusian viewed by authorities as being pro-opposition.

Protests over Lukashenko's 2020 election win, which was officially a landslide, lasted for several months before being snuffed out by security forces, triggering a mass exodus of Belarusians.

Lukashenko has ruled Belarus with an iron first since 1994, using security forces to intimidate, beat and jail his foes or force them to flee abroad.

Tsikhanouskaya's husband Syarhei Tsikhanouski has been in jail since 2020 after being barred from taking part in the election that his wife contested instead.

A march of solidarity with Belarus, marking the third anniversary of the presidential election in that country, went through the streets of Białystok on Sunday. The procession began at Kościuszki Square and ended in front of the Belarusian Consulate.

The participants of the march included Białystok authorities and residents as well as members of the Belarusian diaspora and Belarusian minority in Poland.