Andrei Sharenda: Regime Must Feel Its Isolation

The Belarusian revolution has its own heroes.

Activist of European Belarus from Brest Andrei Sharenda tells in an interview with Charter97.org how one can support political prisoners and what Belarusians can do to bring the day of their release closer.

- What do you now know about your wife Polina Sharenda-Panasiuk, who is in custody?

- I have almost no information from her. Until late November, she regularly wrote letters to either her mother or to my mother. But since late November, she has practically not written letters. For two months only two small cards arrived. One was a New Year's greeting. Given the scant information from her and relatives of other political prisoners, I know that Polina was in solitary confinement.

In December, it was at least 15 days. After it, Polina was taken to a ward-type room. It's a kind of punishment. Apparently, she will spend there three months. During this so-called punishment period, she is not allowed to receive any kind of parcels and go shopping.

According to a lawyer who called the correctional facility, it's planned to transfer Polina to an indoor prison in Mogilev. The women's correctional facility in Homel wants to get rid of an inconvenient political prisoner in the form of Polina. Why inconvenient? Because Polina still, even there, in prison, continues her struggle. She does not give up. She does not recognize the system. She urges all Belarusians to do the same - not to put up with the situation in the country and to continue the fight for freedom by all means.

- Not only Belarusians support Polina. People like former Polish Foreign Minister Anna Fotyga and Isabelle Santos, a deputy of the European Parliament from Portugal, also pay attention to Polina's situation. How important is the international attention to the topic of political prisoners in Belarus? How does it help those who are behind bars?

- Yes, it is important. Basically, all political prisoners, currently held in Belarus, are hostages of the regime. Their lives are at risk. International support is something that stops the regime from intensifying torture and abuse of political prisoners.

On my part, I would like to appeal to those European and world politicians who support the Belarusian political prisoners. It is not enough to express the words of support. Only economic sanctions and a complete break of any relations with the dictator can release political prisoners. We see how some countries are still somehow secretly, but most - almost openly, trading with the regime, which has blood on its hands. There are thousands of broken families in Belarus and tens of thousands of families who had to flee Belarus. The main option of support is to work to make this bloody regime feel like a pariah in Europe. One must suspend all economic cooperation with it. This is exactly what I call for.

- You publish a series of "The heroes of our city" on Facebook. You share the stories of Brest activists. How did you come up with this idea? Are there many heroes in Belarus now?

- Those events that began in the summer of 2020, I believe, are the beginning of a new Belarus. The new Belarus began with a revolution. As time passes, we can safely say that the revolution of dignity began in the summer and fall of 2020. It continues. This revolution has its heroes.

The names of many of them do not leave the pages of websites. They appear in the press and other sources of information.

However, there are those we do not know about. Their contribution is very significant. They have risked their lives and freedom to keep Belarus free. Their names are unknown. I would like people to know about these unknown heroes.

Most of my heroes are Brest citizens, whose contribution to our common cause is priceless.

They are ordinary and unarmed people who came out to meet thousands of armed riot policemen, law enforcers and the military. My little posts say that the revolution is not over, as long as we have heroes like Vitaly Bondarenko, Alexander Kabanov, my wife Polina and many others. The struggle continues.

Many of our city's heroes are now behind bars. We, ordinary people who are now in exile, who are now in hiding, who have just now decided to do business, we must not stay on our own.

One story tells of an 18-year-old girl, Vitalia Bondarenko, who took to the streets of Brest in August to stand up for her freedom. Her story may already be a little better known. The girl just happened to be on the barricades in the center of Brest. Unfortunately, she could not avoid detention on August 10. She was detained, tortured, captured by the punishers. A criminal case was opened against her.

Fortunately, she managed to escape prison at some point and was released and immediately went abroad. However, when she saw what was going on in Belarus, how her friends were detained and put under pressure, she returned.

Vitalia didn't see her future in any other country. She wanted to defend her freedom in Belarus. In the winter of 2020, she came back to Belarus and took part in the street marches. After one of them, she was detained and sentenced to four years in prison. You can read her detailed story on my Facebook page.

Her story is not as well known as Polina's or Maria Kolesnikova's, but Vitalia is a real hero not only of Brest but of all Belarus. She is in the clutches of punishers. Nevertheless, she continues her fight for freedom.

I believe that such an ordinary girl, who did not know anything about politics until 2020, has become a true patriot of her country. I think the future belongs to such people.

- What can the Belarusians abroad and inside the country do to bring the day closer when our heroes will be at large?

- First of all, the countries of Belarusians abroad must always keep the topic of Belarus so that it does not disappear from the agenda and the pages of the media in those countries. Unfortunately, I, am in exile at the moment. I hope it's only temporary, and soon I'll be able to come back and reunite with my family.

The main thing is that we have to press on. I've mentioned it before. European countries continue to play economic games with the dictator. There are still many European companies trading directly with Lukashenka's wallets. It's just outrageous and unacceptable. While our heroes are behind bars, it must be stopped by all means and as soon as possible.

I urge all Belarusians abroad to rally around one idea. Lukashenka's regime must be an outcast not only in Europe but in the entire civilized world. We must unite and form a common agenda to stop every economic relation with the dictatorial regime.

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