Sweden has expressed solidarity with the European Humanities University, which was declared an “extremist organisation” by the Belarusian authorities. Sweden’s Foreign Ministry described the decision by the Belarusian regime as an attack on academic freedom.
“Sweden is deeply troubled to learn that the Supreme Court of Belarus has declared the European Humanities University in Vilnius an “extremist organisation”. This is an attack on academic freedom, the opportunities for Belarusian youth and on Lithuania. Sweden is a longstanding supporter of EHU and we stand in solidarity with the university, its faculity and students, as well as with Lithuania,” the Swedish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Lithuania’s foreign minister and Estonia’s Foreign Ministry have also expressed solidarity with EHU.
Earlier on Wednesday, Belarus’s Supreme Court declared the Vilnius-based European Humanities University, together with its structural subdivisions, an “extremist organisation”.
The Prosecutor General’s Office said that EHU’s activities are supervised by foreign states and foundations and claimed that the university’s work is aimed at “destabilising the socio-political situation” in Belarus.
The Prosecutor General’s Office believes that the university is preparing Belarusian youth “to implement Western scenarios for transforming the political system, promoting so-called democratic values and ‘alternative’ interpretations of historical, cultural and other events”.
