Sentenced to prison, Kalesnikava’s sister is convinced that the days of the regime have been numbered

“It shows that the government is afraid of Maryja,” Chomič said in a telephone interview with BNS on Monday night.

After leading massive protests against authoritarian President Aliaksandr Lukashenko last year, the Kalesnikava regime has been accused of calling for actions to undermine national security, conspiring to unconstitutionally seize power, and establishing and running an extremist entity.

Kalesnikava is the only protest leader left in Belarus. She was arrested a year ago, on September 8, on the border between Belarus and Ukraine.

According to the officially announced version of the press service of the Belarusian State Border Committee, Mr. Kalesnikava, along with two other opponents, tried to cross the border and were pushed out of the car cabin.

Ms. Kalesnikava’s companions later reported that KGB agents had put a bag over her head, put her on a minibus and wanted to be forcibly deported, but she tore up her passport at the border to avoid the forced deportation and jumped out of the car.

He led the protests last summer along with opposition leader Sviatlana Cichanouskaya and activist Veranika Capkala, who fled the country.

In Belarus, Kalesnikava led the campaign of Viktor Babaryka, who was sentenced to 14 years in prison, to run for president last year.

“There was little hope that perhaps the judges would understand and hear the case fairly and make a fair and equitable decision. However, I understood that the punishment would be harsh, ”said the Belarusian activist’s sister.

“Even after the sentence, V. Babaryka was clear that severe sentences would be imposed on both Maria and Maxim because it was a team, it was the strongest candidate. In addition, they have shown incredible strength all these years,” he added, referring to the lawyer Maxim Znak, who was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Monday.

– How do you feel after today’s news?

– The situation is not easy, but 11 years. I am very worried about my father because he is still in Belarus, of course it is very difficult for him. However, I am absolutely convinced that Mary will not be in prison for 11 years. It probably doesn’t make me so sad. I know from both the media and the lawyers that he’s still very strong all these years. Lawyers have never seen her sad, moody, or pessimistic.

I get it, I know he won’t get over it all. Once again, there were no illusions, we knew that the punishment would be long. That perception was first, and probably proved, when Viktor Babaryka was 14 years old. Maryja was on V. Babaryka’s team, as was Maxim Znak. It was the first successful presidential election campaign of its kind in 27 years, with the emergence of a very strong candidate, supported by a majority of Belarusians, who won 400,000. citizen signatures. This has never been the case in the history of independent Belarus.

Understandably, this government got rid of the strongest and most dangerous opponents and leaders in this way – by imprisoning and meting out such harsh punishments.

– You say after hearing that your sister is trying not to miss the boom. How do you see how it does it?

– I think it’s Mary’s character. She was very strong, always like this, optimistic. In any situation, see positives. Knows how to handle difficult situations and support others. Now we see it very well, all these years she has been supporting Belarusians from prison, although it is as if we should support her.

Again, we see that such behavior of the government shows its own weakness. The repressive apparatus in Belarus continues to function, although people do not come out, they no longer show white and red flags. This shows that the government is afraid and that even a year later it feels that it does not control the country. I think Mary gets it too.

She spent years in prison and the way she is treated, how she is treated, (…) shows only the weakness of the regime. I think you understand this and see that you are right. That is why he is doing it.

– What do you think enabled Ms Kalesnikava to become one of the main opposition figures in Belarus?

– In May of last year, Maryja joined V. Babaryka’s team. They said in this regard that if he was arrested he would have to stay with the team that would organize the electoral campaign. One of those men was Mary, Maxim. She became very active in this.

After V. Babarykos failed to register as a candidate, Maryja and the team joined opposition forces together with Sviatlana Cichanouskaya, Veranika Cepkala, to move on. The appearance of such a strong female trio was, of course, an incredible event in Belarus. (…)

I think the fact that Veranica and Sviatlana left and Mary stayed also had significant significance (for their promotion). Staying in the country was his decision in principle. (…)

– And did you understand his decision? Probably both Mary herself and you and your family realized what could end this.

– Yes. I support her. These are the fundamental principles that he followed. In an interview, she herself said that neither she herself would be happy nor that we would all be happy to know that her friends were staying somewhere in prison and that she would live, for example, in Germany. In this sense, I understand it, although I myself left the country last August. It seems to me that such a solution requires a lot of force.

– Have you ever expected today’s court decision to be different?

– There was little hope that perhaps the judges would understand and hear the case fairly and make a fair and equitable decision. However, I realized that the punishment will be great. Even after the conviction, it was clear to Babaryka that both Mary and Maxim would be sentenced to great punishment because it was one team, it was the strongest candidate. Furthermore, they have shown incredible strength all these years.

– How do you feel about your sister at the moment, what feelings are taking over?

– I am very proud of Mary, I try to support her to be her voice. I want to help her and that helps me to move on. In total, there are around 650 political prisoners in the country, which is such a global problem and the level of repression is really very high. I understand that I want to help not only Maria, talk not only about Maria, but about everyone.

I don’t know if you can call it optimism, but I realize that I have to do what I can so that it ends in a few years, a few months. The repression will continue to diminish one day, perhaps the government will change completely, perhaps negotiations or dialogues will begin on the liberation from repression.

– During these years, when Mary was arrested, did you find a way to communicate with her?

– We have tried with letters, but it is very difficult to communicate by letters. On average, a letter takes two weeks, which means that the response to the letter arrives in a month. Calls to the prison are allowed and our father in Belarus always asks for an interview whenever possible. He had always refused until now, but now, after the verdict, they were allowed to meet. Maybe they will meet tomorrow.

– And when was the last time you spoke to your sister?

– September 6, exactly one year ago.

– At the beginning of the interview, he said that he was assured that in the end his sister would not have to spend eleven years in prison. Why are you so sure?

– In Belarus, the situation has changed dramatically. People have changed, there have been fundamental changes in our minds last year, when people tried to behave in a way they never had before: they took responsibility, they participated in the election campaign, they collected signatures. They finally saw that there were worthy candidates in the country. Absolutely new politicians emerged last year that had not been previously announced. They received a lot of support.

Now, after protests and rallies as large as ever before, people have seen that there are so many and that there are indeed people worthy of ruling the country. After all, we have been thinking for 27 years that there is nothing else, that there is only one person who can deal with the country. They all saw that this was not the case.

We have seen great solidarity among the people when the people were beaten, detained immediately after the elections last August. The solidarity that people have shown and seen work, and that continues to this day as the number of political prisoners grows, people realize that something has to be done. People no longer participate in mass protests, but instead communicate with each other, and those horizontal connections remain. People support each other.

That fundamental change that actually took place is impossible to forget. This is probably the most important thing that has happened in Belarus over the years.

– Do you mean that the regime will not disappear in 11 years?

– Yes. Now it is difficult to say how this will happen, but the behavior of the current government is very inappropriate. This diversion of the plane to Minsk and the arrest of Raman Pratasevičius, the situation with the Olympic athlete, the crisis on the border with the European Union, all this reaction to the events is inadequate. It shows the fear of the regime, not understanding what to do next. They will not be able to stay in power for long in this state, but it is also very difficult to expect the right thing from them now.

On the other hand, a level of violence persists that prevents people from acting in public. Therefore, I understand that the situation will change, but it may not change that fast, not tomorrow, not in a year, but in a few years those changes will happen.

– What do you think the sentence tells your sister about the regime?

– This shows that the authorities are afraid of Maria. No matter how Lukashenko says that he is not at war with women, over the years we have seen how strong women are with us. Maryja is a great example of this, Sviatlana, Veronica are great examples of how women can take responsibility and become leaders. They have tremendous support and tremendous potential.

– We have already seen a series of reactions from the international community to what happened. Do you expect something else?

– I hope and I would like this support that we have heard today to be consistent. A lot is happening in different parts of the world, but I want it to be taken into account that hundreds of political prisoners remain in Belarus. And these are just official numbers, there are probably over a thousand of them there. (…)

This is not just a Belarusian problem, it is an international problem. The Belarusian government has, in fact, become an international threat.