Seviarynets: We shouldn't be pink ponies and say that we will pat on the head those very KGB officers or special forces who beat people

Pavel Seviarynets at the celebration of Freedom Day in Vilnius on March 25, 2026

— Pavel, your first visit after receiving a Lithuanian alien's passport was to the Czech Republic, where you had a very packed schedule: from a Christian forum to a Chernobyl conference. Please tell us about it.

— First, there was an invitation from the Czech Christian Democrats to their congress. Their leadership was changing, and their direction of work was changing. I had the opportunity to speak there, receive an award from the chairman of the Czech Christian Democrats, and meet the new leader. He is a very charismatic person; many place their hopes on him and even say that he is the only alternative to today's populist Babiš.

— These days you were with Sviatlana Vranava, a Czech woman who learned the Belarusian language thanks to you, who probably translated all your works, and traveled to Belarus. Can you explain why she became so involved in Belarusian culture?

— Sviatlana is a wonderful Czech and now a wonderful Belarusian. She knows the Belarusian language better than many, many Belarusians. She is a believer in the Protestant church. She testifies herself that God spoke to her and said: "Belarus is yours." And so she took up learning Belarusian, began to travel and meet Belarusian Christians, Belarusian politicians, and translate books. She translated not only my books but also Zmitser Dashkevich's book and others. She does a great job helping Belarusian political prisoners. We were with her with a white-red-white flag in a Protestant church, where Prague Christians prayed for Belarus. It brought tears to my eyes. Many Czech Catholic and Protestant media, and general political media know Sviatlana; she is a kind of national ambassador of Belarus for them.

— Did you receive letters from Sviatlana Vranava while behind bars?

— Letters came to Valadarka not only from her but also from those believers whom she awakened to pray and advocate for Belarus. But then we were forbidden any letters from non-relatives, and, unfortunately, the correspondence then stopped.

"My formula is Jesus Christ speaking Belarusian"

— Pavel, more than four months have passed since your release and forced expulsion from your homeland. How do you see the situation in Belarus now, and what can and should be done at this moment?

— Many thanks to those who helped free us — the administration of President Trump, very grateful to Lithuania, which hosted us, Poland, which also hosted many Belarusian political prisoners, and other countries. Belarusians, Belarusian solidarity, plus these countries created all the conditions to truly decide what kind of work you want to do. For me, the question is not about naturalizing or assimilating in Europe. For me, there is only one question: we must free Belarus, and for this, we must gather all our strength. And so, now Voliechka and I are working together to establish such work. This includes videos, Belarusian books, enlightenment, education, and party work for the Belarusian Christian Democracy. We are tackling what was unfinished, because we must prepare for the struggle and for victory.

— Former political prisoner Uladzimir Matskevich, when I spoke with him a month after his release, said that the national idea is to return to Belarus. According to you, what is the national idea now?

— The national idea for Belarusians has always been one. My formula is Jesus Christ speaking Belarusian. This means the Belarusian form, the Belarusian language, and Belarusian culture for the highest morality. A nation currently at a geopolitical crossroads, facing the threat of nuclear war, at the very focus, at the very center of threats and expectations, must stand at an enormous moral height. We must understand that we are responsible to past, and especially to future generations, for the kind of Belarus we will be able to regain and build. This is a decisive time for us. Many may not understand, but the dynamics are colossal. How the world has changed even since the beginning of this year: Venezuela, Cuba, Iran, talks of a world war, of a redivision of the world. And Belarusians must not disappear. Belarusians must fulfill their calling and their mission. I consider participation in this to be the main task for every Belarusian who loves Belarus.

"From the outside, it sometimes even seems that the Coordination Council divides more than it unites, and its calling is precisely to unite Belarusians"

— You have very actively engaged in socio-political life, leading the organizing committee for the celebration of Freedom Day. Elections to the Coordination Council will take place soon. Why are you not running in the elections for the Coordination Council?

— There were proposals regarding the Coordination Council, and I understand that it is probably the only platform where Belarusians can vote for now. This is a plus for the Coordination Council. On the other hand, there are many scandals, many talks about the fact that the fruit of their work there is essentially clarifying relationships. From the outside, it sometimes even seems that the Coordination Council divides more than it unites, and its calling is precisely to unite Belarusians. Therefore, I took a pause here. It's a good thing to observe. I think that political processes will not disappear from us. I am not participating myself, but I sympathize with some of the people who are running, and I think I will be ready to state my sympathies for these people closer to the Coordination Council elections themselves.

— I suspect there were proposals not only to run for the Coordination Council but also to join the structures of democratic forces, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya's office, the United Transitional Cabinet. Were there such proposals?

— There were proposals. And I highly respect the work of those people who offered cooperation, who offered to join. By the way, not only the Office, not only the Cabinet, but also other political forces. But I see my calling as a Christian Democrat in providing a certain middle ground, a certain cement for uniting Belarusians. This is exceptionally important now. Either we will be united, or we will not exist. And therefore, we, Christian Democrats, are called to bring what is called "gluing," "cementing" in English. And for this, one must not be on one side or belong to a certain formation, position, or opposition, but try to hear everyone and try to work for everyone. This is what I tried to do during the organization of Freedom Day: I talked to everyone, it was different with different people, but I heard, I listened, I saw how many capable and talented people there are. I greatly regretted and regret that much of this energy is spent on clarifying interpersonal relationships, and I dream that Belarusians will be able to agree. The decisive time is approaching, I believe in this, and we need to prepare for it.

"From inside Belarus, people very much want to see agreement among those who fight for Belarus"

— I regularly read you on social media; you write about different people. Your position now is to see only the positive in people, in phenomena, to emphasize the positive, to leave something negative aside, in the past. What is the fruit of this approach, especially now, when, as you say, there are quite a lot of different disputes — minor, not minor, for various reasons?

— A positive approach is practically the only thing left for us Belarusians now. We must see the good in each other. "Belarusian to Belarusian is Belarusian" means not just saying good words, but trying to give ourselves, trying to smooth over or not notice mistakes, of which we ourselves have plenty. We are all sinful people, we all make mistakes. And there's no need to make an exception—that someone there is infallible or holy. But when we recognize the person, the human being, the Belarusian, our beloved Belarus as the highest value, we must understand that here, for each other, it's only good. And this is a very in-demand position. From inside Belarus, people very much want to see agreement among those who fight for Belarus. This is the main requirement. Not who shouts louder or looks cooler, but the question of how much you are friends together, how much you can come out in dense ranks.

— I know that you came to God when you first went to prison. Based on your observations, how many people in captivity become believers, find support in this? What is the potential of this?

— I think that people who change themselves, who change for the better from within, they somehow shine, they somehow set an example for others. And this example is not only that they become Christians, belong to some denomination, and begin, for example, to say things consonant with Christian democracy or with Belarusian history. The point is also that this shows: trials, prisons, all the evil that is being done now in Belarus, it makes people better. God turns evil into good. What is happening now with Belarusians is not a reason for disappointment, to throw ashes on one's head and say: "Oh, dear Belarus, you are suffering again." There is no need to whine, no need to despair, no need to be disappointed. We must understand that this is reinforcement, training before a decisive breakthrough; we must understand that we, Belarusians, as a nation, are gaining resilience. And those people who come out and talk about God, about struggle, about freedom, ready to work and fight further, such as Eduard Palchys, or Mikalai Dzyadok, or Mikita Zalatarou, in my understanding, are the future of Belarusian politics, those who will lead Belarus forward.

On survival behind bars

— I have read many memoirs of former prisoners of Stalinist camps. Both Larysa Heniush and Nadzeya Ramanawna Dziamidovich mention that in the Stalinist Gulag, the executioners could do nothing to believers. To what extent is faith a means of survival behind bars, to what extent does it allow one to protect oneself in captivity?

— In my case, it was often simply salvation. I can say that if I hadn't believed, if I hadn't prayed, hadn't read the Bible, it's very possible that I would have broken down, very possible that I would have committed suicide, because terrible things happened there. There are things there that human strength often cannot overcome. Of course, there is fear, there can be panic, every person there — there are no iron people — faces a situation in which it is revealed whether they will persevere or not. And here I could only rely on God. Here I could imitate Christ, who was silent before his judges. I read Solzhenitsyn. I understood that he, and his political comrades in the Gulag, also had such a standard of behavior: we can be silent, we can simply stand with dignity, simply endure — and it works. Therefore, faith holds strongly. It holds even more strongly in the free world, when there are many doubts, many temptations, and many such hesitations or waverings. God leads and holds.

"Kurapaty is a national necropolis. The first advisor in this matter, of course, will be Zianon Pazniak"

— Twenty-five years ago, in September 2001, in Kurapaty, I witnessed how you stopped the construction work to expand the ring road to Kurapaty. Then a Memory Watch was established for eight months, and the expansion of this road proceeded under public control. A large part of your life is connected with Kurapaty, with different stages of the struggle for Kurapaty, the place of mass execution of victims of Stalinist repressions, where, according to various estimates, forty to two hundred thousand people were shot. For several years, there was a struggle against the "Let's Go Eat" restaurant near Kurapaty. Now we know little about what is happening in Kurapaty. Sometimes there are reports of successive acts of vandalism. We don't know if there are community workdays there, if the place is being tidied up, if crosses that might have simply aged are being replaced. What does this place mean to you, and what can people who are now in Belarus do for Kurapaty?

— Kurapaty has been and remains one of the most important places in Belarusian history. As a national necropolis — so many innocent people were killed there. It is a place on a national scale where generations should come: some to repent, some to learn history. And it is among these pine forests, on these hills, that waves of national revival often arise, as it was, for example, when the Belarusian Popular Front emerged, or when the Belarusian movement revived in the early 2000s. Therefore, even today, anyone can freely come there, stand by these graves, look at these spring flowers breaking through the ground, straighten a cross. It is clear that not everyone can talk about this on social media, but here we are talking about ourselves, about our hearts. And, I think, this memory watch in Kurapaty, free, perhaps unorganized, personal, must continue.

— When you return to Belarus, what will you do in Kurapaty?

— Kurapaty is a national necropolis. The first advisor in this matter, of course, will be Zianon Pazniak, who once discovered Kurapaty. I remember we thought there should be a museum there. Perhaps there could simply be a chapel or prayer sites for all confessions. There could and should be some appropriate exhibition so that not only Belarusians but also people from all over the world could come there. But in any case, it will be one of the most important and iconic places in Belarus at the state, governmental level. Undoubtedly, in the visit program for every high foreign guest who will come to the new Belarus, Kurapaty should be number one.

— I wanted to mention a discussion on social media initiated by former political prisoner Aliaksandr Fiaduta, reacting to a remark by Nobel laureate Ales Bialiatski that books in Russian should be published in Russia. The discussion around this topic brought up another problem — who buys books in Belarusian in emigration. It turned out that if the Belarusian translation of Marquez's "Autumn of the Patriarch" is not sold, the books will be destroyed according to the conditions of the translation's publication. The point is that when people in exile don't have their own apartments, often move, they simply cannot buy books. What is your vision for the optimal work of Belarusian publishers abroad?

— First of all, I will say that I would gladly read Aliaksandr Fiaduta in Belarusian. We need to understand, and here I support Ales Bialiatski, that if a Belarusian does not speak Belarusian with a Belarusian, we will not have any Belarus. This is especially important for intelligent and educated people who perfectly master the Belarusian language. Therefore, Belarusians, speak Belarusian — this is one of the paths to victory.

— Regarding books: there is the problem you mentioned, and not much money for Belarusians in emigration, and nowhere to store paper books — all of this exists. But I am convinced that we have not reached far from all Belarusians who are currently abroad.

I will try to do this within the framework of presenting my books. In mid-May, I expect the release of the book "Belarus is Holy" — these are prison drawings, sayings, and poems. Following it, several more books that I wrote in captivity will be released. I will try to run a scheme so that in every country where Belarusians live, a series of presentations takes place, to reach those people who were not interested, did not attend political, or socio-political, or even cultural Belarusian events. We will try to reach these people through social networks, personal connections, through churches. The potential of Belarus and Belarusians who are now abroad — hundreds of thousands of people — is far from covered. And I think that the issue with the distribution of Belarusian books will be gradually resolved when we see how many Belarusians there are.

In Vilnius alone, there are tens of thousands of Belarusians. These are truck drivers, IT specialists who live their own lives. They are disappointed by endless quarrels or disputes, disappointed by the lack of victories, but no one has canceled soft cultural creative work, no one has canceled touching hearts — from heart to heart — with the Belarusian language. And to include this, to try to do this — that's what we are currently thinking about with our team.

— For fairness, I will say that Aliaksandr Fiaduta speaks Belarusian very well.

— Yes, absolutely. So no questions. My appeal to him: Mr. Aliaksandr, we will read in Belarusian, please write.

"Masha Kalesnikava will speak Belarusian with Belarusians and give as many interviews as possible to Belarusian media"

— Pavel, before recording the interview, you mentioned how in Ukraine, together with Ulad Labkovich, you spoke with Maryna Kalesnikava in Belarusian for about half an hour. Tell us about it.

— Masha speaks Belarusian wonderfully from the time we started in the "Malady Front". She was one of the stars at that time. And she hasn't forgotten it. What is experienced in youth is not forgotten — something bright, just for an idea, for Belarus. I think this is one of the reasons that pushed Masha in 2020 to take such a brilliant part in that politics, in that campaign. And I believe that no trials, no, perhaps, grievances or experiences in prison or after prison will be able to destroy Belarus in her heart. I very much hope that Masha Kalesnikava will speak Belarusian with Belarusians, and give as many interviews as possible to Belarusian media, and will return to Belarusian politics precisely in the context of Belarusian interests, because the potential she showed in 2020 should not be lost. We cannot squander people like Siarhei Tsikhanouski or Masha Kalesnikava — by no means. We must involve them in the common, closest ranks.

— Maria speaks good English and German, she speaks Belarusian. How do you think we can encourage her to speak Belarusian in the public space?

— I think that personal work is needed here. I think that a benevolent attitude is also needed here. I think that those who are now accusing Masha should take a slightly different tone. And, knowing that we must attract every person, especially such valuable people, to Belarus and to Belarusianness, just say: "Masha, we can all make mistakes or we can all not understand something. Sooner or later, we all come to Belarus and Belarusianness. Sooner or later, we understand that it's like a mother. Sometimes in youth or, perhaps, in old age, we don't notice it or neglect it, but the further we go, the more we understand that without it, there's no way." And so, with love, not by explaining why you said this or expressed that incorrectly, but precisely with love and openness, we must attract. If love is to be shown, it should be shown precisely to those people who can help Belarus break free.

"The proposal that received the most votes was 'Postscriptum from Pavel Seviarynets'"

— There was a record-fast fundraiser for creating your YouTube channel, essentially for socio-political work. What's happening now? When will the YouTube channel start working? I saw that you appealed to the audience on social media with a question about what products they would like to see on this YouTube channel. Please tell us: how is it all moving, when can we expect the first streams?

— In fact, we are ready now. But while the elections to the Coordination Council are underway, we decided that it might get lost, because there's a lot of political information noise. Therefore, immediately after the end of the elections to the Coordination Council, at the end of May, most likely, we will launch the YouTube channel. Most people would like to see philosophical essays, political analysis, and some prison memoirs there. A little bit of everything — that's more than half of the votes now. But there are people who say: "No, only this, this channel must be specialized." We'll see how it goes. I believe that as long as YouTube is not blocked in Belarus, we have the opportunity to work for Belarus, for Belarusians. We will try to tell them what we are experiencing here, what we can do for Belarusians now, and encourage them. We can do what people in Belarus cannot do. And we are obliged to do it.

— And what will the team be like? I understand Voliechka will be the operator?

— We have a whole team of Young Front members. I won't publish names now, they are known. We understand that Belarus now needs work of the heart, work that unites, that acts with love, that gives faith, hope, inspiration. This is very lacking in Belarus and among Belarusians. Believers have this. And I think that we will try to share and work together in the coming months.

— What will the YouTube channel be called?

— The proposal that received the most votes was "Postscriptum from Pavel Seviarynets," P. S. for short. The final look of the channel will be clear by the end of the month.

"Frantsishak likes going to the Belarusian gymnasium in Vilnius more than to school in Belarus"

— Your wife Volha ran a fairly successful Christian business in Belarus for many years. What is she doing now, how does she see her future? I mean not only in the family but also work.

— This move was not easy for Voliechka. You can imagine: her parents, family, friends are there. Also the shop, also the car. That is, those things she is now without. She simply left with her son into the wide world, practically with one suitcase. It is truly very difficult. And the first few weeks this was strongly felt. Frantsishak, he took it very easily. He says: "Oh, dad, that's it, we're home, everything is wonderful." He likes going to the Belarusian gymnasium in Vilnius more than to school in Belarus. Most likely, we will work for people who want to publish, people who want to read in Belarusian, write in Belarusian. And Voliechka, of course, as always, is the first friend, assistant number one in the team.

— Can you tell us a bit more about the books?

— "Belarus is Holy" is already prepared for print. I hope to come with presentations to Białystok, and Warsaw, and other cities where I was invited, and to Ukraine too. I very much hope that the fairy tale book I wrote for Frantsishak will also be released. There is already an audio version, and we are making illustrations. There is a book about five hundred Belarusian cities, towns, and villages. Essays about each settlement, for us to understand what it is. This will be interesting first and foremost to those who were born there, whose lives are connected with each of these cities or villages. A Belarusian calendar — essays about three hundred sixty-six days as well. A book about Belarusian stones. As a geologist, while I was sitting, I recalled and also wrote essays about Belarusian stones, including precious stones; they exist in Belarus. A book of prison notes will be about what happened there. I am already publishing parts of it on Facebook. And a book about the Belarusian-Christian trinity — this is Belarus as the junction of three confessions, a global junction, an answer to the question of why Belarus exists. This more philosophical book is also ready. It just needs to be prepared for print and published.

— A very practical question. They don't allow manuscripts to be taken out of prison, do they?

— They don't. And they took absolutely everything from me on the way out. But I wrote to my mother, Voliechka, and Frantsishak in letters. Some things had to be written under the guise of fantasy for Frantsishak. For example, the third "Belarusian Jerusalem," which I am still refining, the completion of the novel trilogy, had to be written under the guise of fantasy: elves, gnomes, changing the names of characters. After a year, the operations department caught on, and such letters were forbidden to me. But, on the other hand, writing about cities, writing about calendar days — what's wrong with that? This all stayed with Voliechka and my mother. We filmed it, made a digital version. Now we have Gemini, artificial intelligence, it reads handwriting very well. I write in block letters, so it reads this text very well — and it's practically ready for typesetting. So I practically have these seven books in hand now. Poems could not be sent. When I was in the penal isolation cell or the cell-type room, they forbade sending anything at all. There, of course, I had to rely on memory. More than twenty poems that will now be published in the book, I had to repeat every Tuesday. Tuesdays were my day: I would rattle off more than twenty poems by heart so as not to forget them. I got out — and restored them.

— You said that Frantsishak much more eagerly goes to the Belarusian-speaking gymnasium in Vilnius than to school in Belarus. Tell us about it. Who has he made friends with already? How is his integration into a new life going?

— There are many stars in Vilnius, I won't name names so as not to forget anyone, not to offend anyone. There are star classes there. You go into the gymnasium, take your son to school, and you start meeting people: "Hello, hi, oh, great." It's just the Belarusian elite there, you understand? And accordingly, children who speak Belarusian, who perfectly understand what Belarus is. So many children speak Russian among themselves, but the fact that their parents sent them to a Belarusian gymnasium so that they would learn the Belarusian language also says a lot. And excellent teachers. From the bottom of my heart, I will say that Frantsishak simply fell in love with the teacher in his class. It's just lovely to watch. The child wants to go to school. This never happened to me in the Soviet Union.

— Continuing the conversation about a positive approach, about seeing only the good, emphasizing the good. There are things that need to be spoken about harshly. I mean what is happening in Belarus now. How does a positive approach combine with calling things by their names? Is it time for this?

— Of course, it is time for this. And what is hostile to Belarus, what destroys Belarus, must be called by its proper name. We must not be pink ponies and say that we will pat on the head those very KGB officers or special forces who beat people, torture them. By no means. I personally can forgive them, but I perfectly understand that the absolute majority of Belarusians will demand justice, and this is absolutely appropriate. We need to understand that our enemies are not those among Belarusians and in Belarus who think differently, but those who commit open evil in Belarus. And against these enemies, we must direct our energy, we must understand that neither Putin, nor Lukashenka, nor his team will ever, despite any dialogues, despite any negotiations, simply build Belarus; they will destroy it.

One can recall how complex the relationships were, what quarrels there were at one time between the Lutskievich brothers and Lastouski. Who cares about that now, who is touched by that now? It turned out to be absolutely unnecessary. They stand side by side in all textbooks, they are simply giants of Belarusianness. And why then waste energy on accusing each other of doing something wrong there, or saying something incorrectly there. All Belarusians must unite to repel the enemies. There are enemies, and there are many of them.

— Pavel, you have the opportunity to address our audience now. Perhaps you need support, help, perhaps you want to urge them to do something?

— Dear Belarusians, thank you very much for your support and prayers, for the support of my family, and the families of all political prisoners. Many thanks to those who continue to fight, and great respect to those who remain unbroken in Belarus. Now is not the time to despair, not the time to relax; now is the time when the future of Belarus is forged. We received such gigantic tempering after 2020 to make a decisive breakthrough. It is approaching. The world is changing very rapidly. And if we have faith, if we have love, if we maintain hope, — we believe, we can, we will win.

• 10
• 0
• 1
• 0
• 0
• 1
• 0
• 1