European Writers’ Council calls on international community to stand up for Belarusian language

September 26, BPN. The European Writers’ Council has called on the international community to help preserve and protect the Belarusian and Ukrainian languages.

“In Belarus, the discrimination and oppression of the Belarusian language and its speakers have been carried out by the state system itself for more than 20 years,” it said. “After the rigged presidential election in 2020, the situation has essentially worsened.”

“In 2022, in Belarus, people are being imprisoned for the very fact of using the Belarusian language and Belarusian-language books are being included in the list of ‘extremist materials,’” it noted.

EWC president Nina George denounced attacks on identity and freedom of expression, saying that standing up for the languages of Europe’s neighbors is part of protecting its fundamental values.

Belarusian intellectuals have long accused the authorities in Minsk of Russification policies.