A Belarusian opposition leader welcomes Lithuania’s decision to open an ICC investigation into the president

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The exiled Belarusian opposition leader was welcomed Lithuania’s step She wants to prosecute her country’s authoritarian president and other officials at the International Criminal Court and said Tuesday that doing so would give her home country new hope.

“For me personally, this step means that I can now explain to Belarusians that the international justice system works, that there are countries that really want to help us.” Svetlana Tichanowskaja said The Associated Press.

“It is important for the Belarusian people to prove that we will not be abandoned and will not be forgotten,” she added at an event in The Hague, a day after Lithuania formally accused President Alexander Lukashenko and others of crimes against humanity , by forcing Belarusians to flee the country.

The ICC prosecutor said he would launch an investigation into the allegations. Belarus is not a member state of the court, but Lithuania argues that the court has jurisdiction, citing a case brought by Bangladesh against Myanmar over the persecution of the Rohingya people.

In its appeal to the International Criminal Court, Lithuania said there were “reasonable grounds” to believe that Lukashenko’s government, police and armed forces had been involved in “deportations, persecution and other inhumane acts” against Belarusian civilians for more than four years.

Hundreds of thousands of Belarusians, including Tsikhanouskaya, have fled the country amid an intensive crackdown on the opposition following massive protests over the 2020 presidential election, whose disputed results gave Lukashenko a sixth term in office. A large part of it went to Lithuania.

Tsikhanouskaya was Lukashenko’s main opponent in 2020 and entered the race after her husband Siarhei Tsikhanovsky was arrested after announcing his intention to run. The day after the election, the authorities asked her to leave the country or face imprisonment.

According to the Belarusian human rights group Viasna, more than 65,000 people have been arrested and many of them severely beaten in Belarus over the past four years in connection with the protests and opposition activities.

As Lukashenko seeks a seventh term next year to extend his three-decade rule, exiled opposition leaders say he is increasing pressure on Belarusians who have moved abroad. The aim is to prevent any support for the opposition from abroad.

The Hague-based International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant last year against Lukashenko’s long-time ally and supporter of the Russian president Vladimir Putin citing his personal involvement Abductions of children from Ukraine. Putin dismissed the arrest warrant last month visited Mongoliaan ICC member state that refused to arrest him and hand him over to court.

Another Belarusian opposition leader, Pavel Latushkasaid last year that he had handed over evidence to the ICC that he said suggested that more than 2,100 Ukrainian children from at least 15 Russian-occupied Ukrainian cities were forcibly taken to Belarus with Lukashenko’s approval. He expressed hope that the materials would prompt the ICC to issue an arrest warrant against Lukashenko.