{"id":201898,"date":"2026-08-31T19:05:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-31T16:05:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/201898\/"},"modified":"2026-08-31T19:05:13","modified_gmt":"2026-08-31T16:05:13","slug":"belarusians-in-poland-in-legal-limbo-because-of-minsks-policies-local-bureaucracy-report-says","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/201898\/","title":{"rendered":"Belarusians in Poland in legal limbo because of Minsk\u2019s policies, local bureaucracy, report says"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n\n \"\"\n
\n \n
\n (Aaron Burden \/ unsplash.com)<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

August 31, Pozirk.<\/em><\/strong> The combination of Minsk\u2019s repressive policies and tightening bureaucratic procedures in Poland has trapped Belarusian exiles in a legal limbo, according to a policy paper by Ana\u00efs Marin, a former UN special rapporteur on human rights in Belarus, and Hanna Macije\u016dskaja, head of the Partyzanka project, which provides legal aid to Belarusian political emigrants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Citing data collected through the Partyzanka project\u2019s hotline, the paper says that Poland, the top destination for Belarusians forced into exile since 2020, has been tightening the screws on Belarusians and making life more difficult for them. \u201cNow the mere fact of holding a Belarusian passport has become an embarrassment, and a challenge for many Belarusian migrants trying to open a bank account abroad for example,\u201d the paper says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The authors note that the tide of public opinion in Poland is turning against exiled Belarusians as Alaksandar \u0141uka\u0161enka\u2019s regime is targeting them with transnational measures against them, notably the suspension of consular services, including the issuance of passports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The paper notes a widening gap between high-level declarations of state support for victims of political repression and \u201cincreasing prejudice and administrative difficulties\u201d on the ground in Poland. Local officials frequently deny political asylum or residence permits to Belarusian applicants, plunging them into \u201clegal uncertainty\u201d and exposing them to potential deportation to Belarus where they would \u201csurely be revictimized,\u201d the authors say. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In forcing their return, \u201cPoland could, unwittingly or not, become complicit in future violations, which in some cases amount to crimes against humanity, given their systematicity and gravity in Belarus,\u201d the paper says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It stresses that Polish authorities do not have to revise national regulations to solve this problem but simply have to apply \u201cthe highest possible standards of protection in line with international refugee and human rights law, and based on best practices.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n
\n \"\"