During the row about the Polish House in Ivianiec (Vałožyn district, west of Minsk), the local authorities have been for several months trying to force Taresa Sobal to join the pro-governmental Polish union. At this moment Taresa Sobal is treated as a suspect in the criminal case according to the Criminal Code Article 210 of the Republic of Belarus.
The local officials are accusing Teresa Sobal with illegal action connected to the grant of money, received by the Polish House from the former leader of Polish Union Tadevush Kruchkouski (Tadeusz Kruczkowski) in 2004 without proper registration. The criminal case is a second step of pressure undertaken by the regime against independent Polish minority organization.
Polish Union in Belarus: history of split
Polish cultural association named by Adam Mickiewicz was founded in Hrodna (city in West Belarus with a large Polish minority) in 1988. In 1990 it was reformed into the nation-wide NGO “Union of Poles in Belarus”. However, the officials did not recognize the results of 5th congress of the organization, which took place in 2005. During that congress Andzelika Borys was elected a leader of the minority organization.
Willing to create a state-controlled structure the officials organized the alternative congress of the Polish Union in Vaukavysk (Hrodna region). However, the new organization was not recognized by the Polish side – Ministry of foreign affairs of Poland has a negative view on the lack of transparency and democratic processes inside the new organization.
At fact from that moment there are two organizations, which represent the interest of Polish minority in Belarus: pro-governmental and the alternative one, which is targeted by the repressions, but is still existing.
Independent Polish union: defying the regime
From 2005 the independent Polish minority organization has been often under pressure and provocations by governmental institutions. Andzelika Borys (left), the leader of organization from 2005, has stated several times that the organization is not political at all and the main aim of it – promotion of Polish culture and language in Belarus.
However, the leader and member of unrecognized organization are regularly summoned by the police and criminal cases are being started against them. Andzelika Borys was accused of drug trafficking in 2006, and in 2007 fined for “street violence”.
One activist of the organisation, a journalist of influential Polish newspaper “Gazeta Wyborcza” Andrei Pachobut (Andrzej Poczobut) was under pressure (also arrested) repeatedly.
In this way the minority organization was transformed into the oppositional one, but it is still the only one recognized by Polish state and the EU.
Ethnic Poles make up to 5 per cent of Belarus population, but in some traditionally Catholic areas in the west of the country they constitute the majority.
