SAR calls on Belarusian authorities to cease targeting EHU students and families
This statement was originally published by Scholars at Risk (SAR) on October 7, 2026. The original publication is available here.
On August 25, 2026, students from the European Humanities University (EHU), Lithuania, reported, upon their return home to Belarus, that they were subject to searches, threats, intimidation, criminal charges, and detentions following Belarus’s crackdown on affiliates of the university. These reports come after the Supreme Court of Belarus declared, on April 14, 2026, EHU a purported “extremist” organization and prohibited its activities, symbols, and insignia within Belarus.
Scholars at Risk is concerned about Belarusian authorities retaliating against members of the EHU community for their institutional ties. By targeting students and their families, the state actively restricts independent research, teaching, publication, and critical dialogue. This crackdown threatens the fundamental rights to free expression and association essential to a functioning higher education system.
Scholars at Risk calls on Belarusian state authorities to immediately remove the “extremist” label from EHU and to cease using detention, legal prosecution, searches, threats, and intimidation against EHU students and their families in retaliation for peaceful academic activity.