Belarusian authorities took a number of repressive steps against uncontrolled educational and cultural activity in Belarus – liquidation of European Humanities University and deportation of British professor Alan Flowers.
On 28 July the minister of education of Belarus Aliaksandr Radzkow signed the order to deprive the non-state European Humanitarian University of the license for the right of educational activity. According to the order, the EHU license was annulled because of absence of premises. It’s worth mentioning that the University lost its premises when the Presidential Administration broke the rent agreement with it.
On 29 July students of EHU held an action of protest in Minsk against the liquidation. Simultaneously, the university administration arranged a press conference at which it was stated that European Humanitarian University would continue its existence in some other forms. The action of protest was carried out in the form of artistic performance – the students used textbooks, posters and artworks. During this measure they distributed information about the events in the university and also wrote on the walls of the university in different languages, using paint balloons.
On 2 August a number of German media printed the appeal of well-known scientists from the universities of Warsaw, Paris, Brussels and Berlin to their Parliaments in which they ask to use all possible measures to convince the official Minsk in the falseness of its decision towards EHU. According to the authors of the appeal, in the liquidation of the university they see an attempt to control the higher education, to which Europe can’t agree.
— European Humanities University struggles for its survival and we ask our respected Parliaments to support this institution, — write European professors.
On 31 July Belarusian authorities deported the professor of Kingston University Alan Flowers was deported from Belarus. Alan Flowers planned to leave for London on 2 August, but on 29 July, when he came for a meeting with the rector of Sakharov institute, he was met by two workers of Minsk Partyzanski BPVS and one KGB worker. They drew on him a report for violation of part 1 of article 185 of the Administrative Code (violations during registration of foreign citizen).
On the following day workers of Visa and Registration Department explained to Mr. Flowers and vice-consul of the British Embassy that there were no pretensions to Flowers’ registration and the reason for the deportation was that professor’s name was found in the list of the persons to who the entrance into Belarus was prohibited. The policemen explained they didn’t know why and when the name was included in the list.
On 31 July workers of Minsk Partyzanski BPVS completed the procedure of deportation. They familiarized Alan Flowers with the ruling, according to which he is to leave Belarus by 3 August. In his passport they put a seal that prohibits to the professor to cross the borders of Belarus for the next five years. They let the scientist leave Belarus on his own, as he had a ticket Vilnus-London for 2 August.
