Belarus launches criminal case against European Humanities University students

Belarusian authorities are conducting searches and interrogations in connection with a criminal case involving cooperation with the European Humanities University (EHU). Students face threats of repression if they do not withdraw from the university. Human rights organization Viasna reported the incident.

Belarus has opened a criminal case in connection with cooperation with the European Humanities University (EHU), according to Belarusian human rights organization Viasna. Authorities have designated the university as an "extremist" organization.

Students are being threatened with serious consequences if they do not withdraw from their studies at the EHU. Pressure in the education sector has become one of the methods used by the Aliaksandr Lukashenko regime against people associated with the opposition and civil society.

The European Humanities University was originally established in Minsk but, following its closure in 2004, continued its operations in Vilnius, Lithuania. The university offers Belarusian students the opportunity to receive education in the spirit of democratic values and academic freedom, which has made it a persistent thorn in the side of the Lukashenko government.

Viasna has documented multiple cases in which Belarusian authorities have used criminal charges related to educational institutions to pressure individuals. According to experts, such actions demonstrate that the regime is intensifying pressure on every Western-oriented institution and its supporters.