Nikolai Statkevich: Belarus Is My Country, And I Am Staying Here

The leader of the Belarusian opposition refused to leave the country.

Belarusian opposition leader, political prisoner Nikola Statkevich has returned to Belarus. The politician's associate Evgeny Vilsky managed to talk to him at the Lithuanian-Belarusian border and told the website Charter97.org about the brief meeting.

"I am a man of honor. I am in charge of my own life. Who is Lukashenko to decide where I should live? Belarus is my country, and I'm staying here," - said Nikolai Statkevich in a conversation with an associate.

According to Yevgeni Vilsky, the leader of the Belarusian opposition looked very gaunt, but cheerful and resourceful.

Nikoli Statkevich is 69 years old. He has been in the opposition since the 1990s. He was a presidential candidate in the 2010 elections, and after them he received a six-year prison sentence for organizing protests. Statkevich refused to write a petition for clemency, but Lukashenko released him early in 2015. In May 2020, shortly before the presidential election in Belarus, Statkevich was detained in Minsk. In December 2021, he was sentenced to 14 years in prison on charges of organizing "mass riots."

We will remind, September 11, 52 Belarusian political prisoners were released. They went to Lithuania. The release came after Lukashenko met with the deputy special envoy of the U.S. President John Cole. Also, Chris Smith, deputy assistant U.S. secretary of state for Europe, came to Minsk. Later it became known about the lifting of sanctions against Belavia.

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