Europe’s shameful silence on Belarus

I last saw Minsk, my home town, in June 2019. There was no hint of what was to come: Belarussians old and young have become used to dictatorship, and elections have long been treated with a weary cynicism. This time, suddenly and joyously, it is different. What is happening on the streets of towns and cities across my country is not an organised uprising; opposition politicians have been jailed and independent media squashed for decades, so that would be impossible. What the world is witnessing is a spontaneous urge for freedom from ordinary people: my fellow citizens. These are not activists; they are nurses and businesspeople, housewives and lawyers.

I am now based in Western Europe and feel guilt at not marching alongside my fellow countrymen and women. Friends who are joining the peaceful marches have been arrested and imprisoned: they are beaten and denied food and water in prison.