Anzhalika Borys No Longer Heads the Union of Poles in Belarus

Anzhalika Borys no longer serves as chair of the Union of Poles in Belarus and now works as director of the Polish language school “Polonika Plus.” In an interview with *SB.BY*, the full version of which will be published on November 14, she is described as the former head of the unregistered organization.

“I would like to especially thank the leadership of Belarus for allowing ethnic Poles, as well as representatives of all other nationalities and ethnic groups (there are more than 100 of them!), to preserve their identity. We now have more than 400 children studying the Polish language, and across the country there are over 3,000. I should also mention that all our plans and curriculum are coordinated with the education department of the Hrodna City Executive Committee. This is normal practice. I’m saying this also as a teacher by education,” she said.

Propaganda outlets also published Borys’s comments on the border closures. According to her, private businesses and ordinary people are suffering from the closures.

“We share common roots — history, culture, and many similar national dishes. And our languages are Slavic, related… We always understood each other, and now… There’s a phrase in the Bible: ‘A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together.’ Personally, I think now is the time to gather them. And the key word here is ‘contacts.’

Without simple human contact between people of neighboring countries, it’s impossible to develop the economy. Private business suffers greatly. In Poland, because of the border closures and sanctions, many companies have gone bankrupt… I’ll say this about borders: they should unite people, not divide them. I haven’t heard a single ordinary citizen express joy over their closure. Cultural ties, built over many years, are being torn apart. Perhaps I’ll repeat myself: those who suffer the most are not the authorities, but ordinary people. Take my mother, for example. She’s 79 years old. All her life she traveled to Poland as if going home. Now, because of logistics — a long detour through Brest — it’s no longer possible,” she said.

“Disagreements, disputes, and quarrels can arise between states just as they do within families, but all of them should be resolved calmly, through balanced dialogue. Geographic neighbors should finally take a step toward each other. Every political situation, no matter how difficult, is eventually resolved — history shows this. People above all want peace and mutual understanding. The word ‘states’ sounds grand and a bit abstract. But people — that’s something concrete. Their friendships, business ties, and family relationships shouldn’t be cut apart,” the former head of the Union of Poles added.

The split within the Union of Poles in Belarus occurred in 2005, when at the sixth congress of the organization, Anzhalika Borys was elected chair, replacing Tadeusz Kruczkowski.

Belarusian authorities claimed that violations had occurred during the congress and did not recognize its results. In August of the same year, a new congress was held, at which Józef Łucznik was elected chair. This time the authorities recognized the outcome, while Poland supported Anzhalika Borys, who continued to lead the unrecognized Union.

Borys was detained in March 2021. A criminal case was opened against her under Article 130 of the Criminal Code on incitement of hatred. A year later, she was released from a detention center and placed under house arrest at her mother’s home in Hrodna. In April 2023, media reported that Anzhalika and her mother had been summoned to Minsk, where she was handed a resolution terminating the criminal case for lack of evidence of a crime. Alyaksandr Lukashenka claimed that he had “amnestied and pardoned” Borys.