{"id":127996,"date":"2025-02-27T14:40:17","date_gmt":"2025-02-27T11:40:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/127996\/"},"modified":"2026-03-10T12:05:06","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T12:05:06","slug":"opposition-leader-sounds-alarm-over-minsks-crackdown-on-nonprofits","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/127996\/","title":{"rendered":"Opposition leader sounds alarm over Minsk\u2019s crackdown on nonprofits"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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February 27, Pozirk.<\/em><\/strong> Minsk’s crackdown on civil society and public initiatives deprived thousands of Belarusians of crucial assistance, Belarusian opposition leader \u015aviat\u0142ana Cichano\u016dskaja has said on World NGO Day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cCivil society has always been at the heart of Belarus,” the politician said on Telegram, praising NGOs in helping seniors and people with disabilities, promoting education opportunities and defending human rights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“These dedicated and motivated people make our society open, resilient and cooperative. However, the regime is breaking down this heart bit by bit: over the past four and a half years, more than 1,800 organizations were shut down,” she noted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NGOs banned in Belarus continue operating and helping political prisoners and their families, rights defenders, journalists and others abroad, Cichano\u016dskaja said, pointing out self-help initiatives within Belarus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSolidarity is what always unites us. Civil society will live as long as there are people ready to lend a shoulder, to help and to say words of support. It lives in each of us, and no dictatorship can destroy it,\u201d she stressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At least 1,896 NGOs were closed between the 2020 presidential election and January 2025 in Belarus, according to a recent report by the Lawtrend human rights group.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier this month, \u0141arysa Bielskaja, permanent Minsk’s representative to the UN Office and other international organizations in Geneva, accused NGOs of attempts to stage a coup d\u2019etat in Belarus in 2020 and involvement in anti-government activities. She failed to provide any evidence to support her allegations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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