Exiled Belarusian activists protest in Tbilisi against asylum denials

November 14, Pozirk. Four Belarusian activists demonstrated in Tbilisi yesterday against political asylum denials by Georgia’s migration authority, human rights activist Raman Kiślak has told Pozirk.

The demonstration lasted for two hours and was the second in a series of similar weekly protests, he said. “Many police officers who showed interest in what we were protesting against but didn’t intervene,” the activist noted.

Activists held the first picket ten days ago near the office of Georgia’s interior minister, Kiślak said. Passers-by were interested and displayed mostly positive attitudes, but police kept asking about the reasons for the protest, he added.

The demonstrations will continue until the discrimination stops and the situation is resolved, the activist said, citing the fear factor as the reason for the small number of active participants.

Georgia is one of the counties where Belarusians flee fearing politically-motivated reprisals at home yet its Belarusian community is shrinking. In early 2024, 11,362 Belarusians resided in Georgia, 15 percent fewer than in 2023.

Earlier this year, nine Belarusians applied for political asylum in Georgia. Over the last few months, Georgian authorities rejected applications by Kiślak and opposition activist Maryna Zialonaja.

Their appeals are scheduled to be heard in court on November 25.

Also read: Belarusians in Georgia protest exiled journalist’s deportation