Фото: Офис Тихановской
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya addressed Belarusians on the occasion of International Children’s Day. She stressed that the issue is not only about safety, but also about the right to live at home, ask difficult questions, dream and grow up in a country where childhood can truly be enjoyed.
“For parents, there is nothing more precious than their children. Almost everything we do, we do with them in mind. So that they can grow up, make mistakes and dream. So that they can achieve what we could not.
I am a mother of two children. And I know the feeling of looking at your children and thinking: may you have a better life. May you have more opportunities. May you be happier than we were. This is probably the most natural wish any parent can have.
It seems so simple, but the reality in Belarus today is very different. Childhood increasingly means learning to stay silent and obey, because the regime does not see children as individuals with their own character and dreams. It sees them as future ‘proper’ citizens.
But is that really what we want for our children? I believe every mother would agree with me — children have the right to grow up differently. They should learn to think critically and independently, ask questions, argue, and make their own choices, even the wrong ones.
Life is often very difficult for Belarusian children. My children were young when we left Belarus, but they know very well that our country is a dictatorship and that we cannot return home. There are children whose parents are in prison and cannot be with them. There are those growing up far from home, and those who learned far too early to be cautious — what can be said at school and what is better left unsaid. Behind all of this is the life of a child who desperately needs the chance to simply be a child.
Protecting children is not only about safety. It is about the right to live at home, to be close to parents and loved ones. The right to ask uncomfortable questions, argue, make mistakes and dream. The right to grow up in a country where childhood can truly be enjoyed and where there is no fear. And that is exactly what we are fighting for — a better future for our children.”, the statement said.