Georgia denies Belarusian rights advocate Kiślak asylum seeker certificate

September 17, Pozirk. Belarusian human rights activist Raman Kiślak, contesting Georgia’s refusal to grant him political asylum, told Pozirk that the Department of Migration has denied him a certificate of asylum seeker, effectively preventing him from obtaining a new temporary ID.

“At this stage, you are not considered an asylum seeker in Georgia,” a Department of Migration official informed him.

“They refused to extend my asylum seeker status and did not grant me any other status,” Kiślak said.

According to him, the absence of a valid ID imposes serious restrictions, including the inability to maintain a bank account.

Kiślak plans to appeal the department’s decision in Georgia and to report the incident to the UN Human Rights Committee, which in August ordered Georgia not to deport him to Belarus until his case has been reviewed.

Last month, the committee formally began considering his complaint against Georgia.

On July 11, Kiślak received a final asylum rejection after exhausting all available legal remedies in recent years. He was given 30 days to leave the country but instead chose to challenge the ruling.

If deported to Belarus, Kiślak—whose passport has expired—would almost certainly face politically motivated persecution. Belarusian authorities accuse him of terrorism, high treason, and conspiracy to seize power in connection with his human rights work. These charges carry the death penalty as the maximum sentence.

Georgia has not satisfied a single asylum request from Belarusians in 2019–2025, according to Pozirk’s analysis of its interior ministry’s statistics.

Georgia is home to about 12,000 Belarusians, who fled their country for fear of reprisals but their number keeps shrinking.

Georgia told not to deport Belarusian activist pending UN review