Belarus pressures families of students at exiled university in Lithuania

Belarusian security forces have carried out more than 30 searches across the country in what human rights defenders are calling the "EHU case," according to the Viasna Human Rights Center. The raids have targeted students, graduates, and others linked to the European Humanities University (EHU), as well as their families.

Viasna reports that authorities are putting intense pressure on parents, demanding they contact their children studying at the Vilnius-based university and force them to withdraw and return to Belarus. Some families have been given a strict 10-day ultimatum to remove their children from the institution.

Security forces have gone as far as openly warning parents that if their children stay enrolled, they themselves could face criminal detention. Several relatives of EHU students have already been arrested.

This wave of repression follows the Belarusian government's April 14 decision to designate EHU as an “extremist organization,” a ban that also covers the university’s symbols and branded materials.

The crackdown has already taken a toll, with around 100 students leaving the university. Founded in Minsk in 1992, EHU was forced to shut down by the regime and relocate to Vilnius, Lithuania, where it has since served as a vital academic sanctuary for Belarusian students in exile.

/ AI translated, human checked