Minister seeks legal review of Belarusian activist and other asylum cases

Lithuania’s interior minister, Martynas Katelynas, plans to ask law enforcement to assess the activities of Belarusian activist Olga Karač and the public institution she leads, Mūsų namai, as well as those of other people denied asylum on national security grounds. LRT reported the announcement on Monday.

Katelynas said five Belarusian citizens had been denied asylum in Lithuania over the past two years because they were considered threats to national security, but could not be deported. Lithuanian and international law prohibit returning people to countries where they may face torture or inhuman or degrading treatment, he said. Under current rules, they are instead issued permits to live and work in Lithuania.

The minister named Karač as one of those people. He said the State Security Department considers her a threat to Lithuania’s national security and assessed that she cooperated with Russian intelligence services from 2015 to 2019. In 2024, Lithuania’s Supreme Administrative Court found that the department’s assessment was reasoned and supported by facts, Katelynas said.

Katelynas said he would ask law enforcement to assess Mūsų namai’s activities. He also plans to request an assessment of other people denied asylum on security grounds, including their activities and possible links to hostile states.

The Migration Department will be asked to check whether those people hold citizenship in other countries, have the right to live elsewhere or could travel to a safe third country. The Justice Ministry will assess whether existing legal measures are sufficient to restrict their activities and those of associated organisations. Katelynas said he would propose legislative changes if needed.

Karač was denied asylum in 2023, but was offered a one-year temporary residence permit on humanitarian grounds. She had applied for political asylum in 2022, saying she feared the Belarusian regime was trying to take her life. Karač has categorically denied reports that she cooperated with Russian intelligence and has said that a temporary residence permit does not make her feel safe in Lithuania or abroad.

Mūsų namai says it provides Belarusians with humanitarian and psychological assistance, helps refugees find work and monitors human rights violations.