The legislative projects being prepared by the Belarusian democratic forces aim to prevent the return of dictatorship. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya stated this at the high-level conference “Belarus: Building the Foundations for Democratic Change” in the European Parliament.
According to Tsikhanouskaya, in recent years the democratic forces have brought together leading Belarusian and international experts to learn from both the successes and the mistakes of Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, Finland, Ukraine, and Moldova.
“The idea behind the new legislation is simple: to stabilise democracy, eradicate corruption, revive a justice system that serves the people rather than the government, and bring Belarus closer to Europe. To guarantee that dictatorship in Belarus will never return. We must not only dream about the future: before building a house, we must first design it and create the blueprints.”
She noted that today’s conference should also demonstrate a European path for Belarus.
“This is what we call a positive alternative, and it is part of our campaign ‘European Roadmap for Belarus’. Very often people do not believe that democratic change in Belarus is possible, or that the European Union would ever accept us. We must show that it is possible, and step by step explain what needs to be done. We know that the credit of trust for a new government will be very limited, and reforms will need to be implemented very quickly. Today, Lukashenka’s laws are adapted to Russian norms or simply copied from them. But Belarus is part of Europe, and our legal traditions go back to the Statutes of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which have existed for centuries. Now we are not building something from scratch — we are returning to our roots. We drafted all these laws in line with the Copenhagen criteria so that our legislation meets EU standards. This will accelerate the process of European integration. The positive alternative is also our response to the need to work with Belarusians inside Belarus under conditions of total control and ongoing repression.”
Tsikhanouskaya said that the draft lustration law became a “bestseller” among officials.
“When we first presented the draft lustration law, it became a bestseller among Lukashenka’s officials. Of course, this concerns the future. Before this project, the regime could speculate and intimidate officials with the prospect of a change of power. By publishing it, we reduced officials’ fear of change and deepened divisions within the elite.”
Tsikhanouskaya stressed that all draft laws are discussed within the Coordination Council.
“We are not just observers — we are all participants in historic events for the region and for the whole of Europe. And I ask all of us not to miss this chance.”