The former presidential candidate and political prisoner Mikola Statkevich, appealed to  the Prime Minister of Lithuania.

Prior to the Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union presidential candidate in the 2010 elections, the leader of the organizing committee of the Belarusian Social Democratic Party (Narodnaya Gramada), a political prisoner Mikola Statkevich wrote to the Prime Minister of Lithuania, Chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Lithuania, Algirdas Butkevicius.

The reason for the letter was the meeting of the Lithuanian Prime Minister with Mikhail Myasnikovich, Belarusian Prime Minister,  that took place just after the release of the information about  the possible visit of Algirdas Butkevicius to Belarus and discussion about  the possibility of issuing an invitation to higher authorities of Belarus (and therefore lifting an entry ban to the EU)  to the Eastern Partnership summit in Vilnius.

When Lithuania was fighting for separation from the Soviet empire, many in Belarus have expressed their solidarity with your struggle. For example, in winter 1991, when the Soviet army lieutenant colonel in protest against the use of weapons by the Soviet Army during the incidents near the Vilnius television station, demonstratively resigned from membership in the Communist Party, Belarusians expressed their strong solidarity. In the spring of that year, I met with Minister of Defence of the State of Lithuania, to express my support for the struggle waged by your people. In June 1991, I performed in Lithuanian television in Kaunas, speaking to soldiers of Belarusian origin not to use violence against the people of Lithuania. Surely you understand that by doing so I risked not only my military career.

Today the Belarusian nation needs your solidarity in the struggle for its freedom, independence and even national identity. The recognized international organizations alarmed about the egregious human rights violations in our country, the general election falsification, a government participation in kidnappings and killings of opposition leaders. Belarusian political prisoners are subjected to pressure and even tortured in order to force them to write pleas for clemency to the President-usurper.

Freedom fighters of our country perceive any direct contacts of the leaders of the democratic countries with the representatives of the Belarusian regime as a betrayal of the ideals of democracy and the attempt to legitimize the dictatorship.

I am writing to you, as to the leader of a fraternal party – a partner of the Belarussian Social Democratic Party (Narodnaya Gramada), and in reference to the idea of the Socialist International. I appeal to you to refuse any meetings with the leadership of the Belarusian regime until the release of the last political prisoner in our country, – writes  Mikola Statkevich from prison No. 4 in Mogilev.