Lithuanian parliament to mark Belarus Freedom Day with commemorative events

The Lithuanian Seimas will host events on Monday to commemorate the 108th anniversary of the declaration of the Belarusian People’s Republic, state news agency ELTA reports.

The ceremonies will begin with a solemn raising of the historic white-red-white flag of Belarus outside the parliament building, accompanied by the national anthem “Pahonia March.” A minute of silence will honor those who died fighting for a free Belarus.

Speeches will be delivered by Seimas Speaker Juozas Olekas, Belarusian democratic opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, and Polish Senate Deputy Marshal Michał Kamiński. The event will open with remarks by Dzianis Kučynski, head of Tsikhanouskaya’s office in Vilnius and her diplomatic advisor.

A roundtable discussion titled “Belarus and Lithuania: Challenges and (or) Opportunities” will follow, featuring representatives of Lithuanian and Belarusian democratic communities.

Belarus Freedom Day marks the anniversary of March 25, 1918, when the All-Belarusian Congress declared the establishment of the independent Belarusian People’s Republic, which existed until the autumn of that year. The current authoritarian regime of Alexander Lukashenko celebrates Independence Day on July 3, a date tied to the 1944 liberation of Minsk from Nazi occupation.

According to the human rights center Viasna, Belarus currently holds 910 political prisoners. Tsikhanouskaya, who challenged Lukashenko in the disputed 2020 presidential election, was forced into exile amid a brutal crackdown on mass protests. She initially resided in Vilnius before relocating to Warsaw, where she is currently based.