While the world is focussed on Coronavirus…
The people of Belarus have been attacked and imprisoned as they try to democratically elect a new leader and oust Europe’s last dictator.
In this video, Belarus Free Theatre’s Managing Directors, Svetlana Sugako and Nadia Brodskaya, appeal to the global artistic community upon their release from prison after being sentenced and incarcerated for defending their right for freedom to vote.
Belarus Free Theatre is based between London and Minsk. Banned by the Belarusian government, BFT has been surviving underground for the last 15 years. Our main mission is to inform and encourage debate amongst fellow citizens through award-winning artistic creations, and ultimately to promote human rights in Belarus.
Wherever you are, lend us your voice and join the campaign.
#IStandWithBelarus
Please give what you can to help us continue our work and #StandWithBelarus
£10.00 will help cover the medical costs and support in subsistence while our art-activists are getting treatment for COVID-19
£25.00 will cover a day of mobile internet usage for BFT - connectivity is the lifeline of peaceful protests
£50.00 will contribute towards saving our theatre space in Minsk: a home of free expression
£100.00 will contribute towards BFT's campaigning in Belarusian rural areas that are cut off from free-flow of uncensored information
£250.00 will contribute towards our global advocacy campaign to fight dictatorship and urge for peaceful transition of power
Dear Friends,
As you are most likely to have seen in the news, following the widespread civil outrage that was sparked throughout Belarus by the results of this month’s rigged Presidential election, the Belarusian government has turned on its own people and orchestrated a bloody nationwide political crackdown that has seen over 7,000 people imprisoned, hundreds severely brutalised, and we’re still looking for the missing and counting the dead.
Over the last 15 years, the brave and talented ensemble of actors, writers and directors of Belarus Free Theatre (BFT) have made a significant contribution to the advancement of democratic change, championing human rights in Belarus and beyond, through thought-provoking theatre and creative campaigning.
Established in Minsk in 2005, BFT was founded on the principles of freedom of speech and artistic expression. We make outstanding theatre to inspire audiences to imagine and strive for change. Declared a public enemy by the state-controlled press BFT has been forced to operate underground since its inception. Our Artistic Directors and co-founders were forced to flee Belarus in 2011 and have been in political exile in the UK ever since. Working between a dictatorship and a democracy, BFT has continued to direct, rehearse, perform and tour, as well as consult and train artists, actors and performers – all while running a 26-member underground theatre troupe in Minsk.
The Belarusian government and its security agencies are increasingly attempting to stifle free speech and democracy, denying Belarusians their fundamental human and political rights. This month, four of our troupe were arrested and imprisoned yet again, and our work in Minsk has been brought to a halt. As the government steps up its efforts to violently suppresses peaceful protest, it is imperative that we act now to support those who are fighting for creative and political freedom, if we are to truly preserve freedom in the West.
Will you join us?
What we are witnessing on the streets of Belarus today is a siren call in the fight against tyranny. Now, more than ever, we need your support.
How to support?
Please consider donating today and support our exceptional and inspiring team of actors, writers and directors who continue to stand up and demand change in Belarus at great personal risk. Your donation will help to support our theatre’s vital advocacy work across Belarus.
BFT is a registered UK charity, and further details can be found on our website here.
Belarus Free Theatre
#IStandWithBelarus Famous faces
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Stephen Daldry
Tom Stoppard
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Agnieszka Holland
Send a postcard to a prisoner
Show your solidarity to those imprisoned while fighting for democracy and human rights by sending a postcard, online to be delivered to prisons.
Enter your message and submit and we'll ensure your postcard is printed and distributed to prisoners.
The full list of Belarusian political prisoners can be found here – it is regularly updated.
Sign a postcard and send your message of support and solidarity to remind those imprisoned that they remain in our thoughts.
