The commemoration in the afternoon began with a rally in Cathedral Square, where former political prisoners, politicians, representatives of civil society, and friends of Belarus spoke.
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About a hundred people gathered at this rally, carrying or wrapped in the historical white and red flags of Belarus.
During the rally, participants chanted “Long live Belarus!” and sang songs that have become symbols of Belarusian solidarity.
Most of the Belarusians who spoke to BNS at the rally, although without much enthusiasm, said they believed that the political situation in Belarus could change in the near future, but there were also those who thought otherwise.
“I am not as optimistic as I was six years ago,” said Anatoliy Chinevich, a 32-year-old IT specialist who worked in Belarus, to BNS.
“This day is about me because I am a former political prisoner. (…) I was in prison for two and a half years. The official version is that I kicked three OMON officers during the riots,” the man said.
Meanwhile, 31-year-old Katsiaryna Kanapliova, who moved to Lithuania four years ago and works as a French language teacher in Vilnius, said she still has hope that the situation in Belarus will change.
“Of course, we have hopes, the belief has not faded. Maybe in a few years (the situation will change – BNS). Our goal is to preserve our Belarusian identity. Even if we live in different countries, (…) we want to preserve our identity,” she told BNS.
“Today we want to remember that many people continue to fight. Many people continue to suffer, and our goal is to show that Belarus is still resisting Lukashenko, still resisting (Vladimir – BNS) Putin, and we want to show this to everyone around, Lithuanians, representatives of other nations,” K. Kanapliova said.
In turn, 53-year-old Tatjana, who worked as a medical center administrator in Belarus, said that even after six years she hopes the situation in her homeland will change, so she came to the rally to remind those around her that “Lukashenko lost the 2020 elections.”
“Today we continue the fight for a free, democratic Belarus. We are doing what the people of Belarus cannot do. (…) I myself left, escaped criminal prosecution. I was detained twice – in 2022 and 2024, then a criminal case was brought against me,” she noted.
44-year-old Ilya Mironov, who worked as a logistics specialist in Gomel and was later imprisoned in a Belarusian prison, told BNS he also hopes the political situation will change.
“We all remember the Soviet Union – it collapsed literally within six months, and no one in 1990 could imagine that it was possible. But that Soviet empire collapsed and independent republics emerged, including the Baltic states, Belarus, and others. So, everything can change in Belarus too,” I. Mironov explained.
According to him, the situation in Belarus primarily depends on how quickly Ukraine wins the war started by Russia.
“In August 2020, I went out to the square in Gomel, despite their attempts to scare us, showing brutal arrests on TV (…) I do not regret going out. I would go out again. I spent two years in prison for my activities and was forced to leave,” the man said.
This year, Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who moved from Vilnius to Warsaw, said in a statement released on Sunday that the Belarusian fight for democracy is not over yet.
“We are determined to finish what we started in 2020. And I truly believe that Belarus can become a success story – a story about the transition from dictatorship to democracy. So today I ask you to support Belarus, fight for the release of political prisoners, continue to pressure the Lukashenko regime, and, of course, firmly support Ukraine,” she said.
According to the Migration Department, about 48 thousand Belarusian citizens have residence permits in Lithuania. Most of them came to Lithuania after the events of 2020, but as labor migrants.
After the rally, participants will proceed in a Freedom March to the Light Watch near the Belarusian embassy. There, a moment of silence will honor the victims of political repression in Belarus and the heroes who died for Ukraine’s freedom, followed by an open microphone event.
The events will conclude with an acoustic concert by Jurij Stylsky, leader of the Belarusian rock band “Dai Darogu!”, at the “Alaus namai” bar.
As BNS wrote, in early August 2020, after the presidential elections in Belarus and A. Lukashenko declaring himself the winner again, hundreds of thousands protested in the country, to which the authorities responded with repression.
About 65 thousand people were detained during the repressions, main opposition figures were imprisoned or fled the country. As a result, Western sanctions were imposed on Belarus.
