Photo: svaboda.org
My name is Elena Gnauk. I am 68 years old, a former political prisoner, a retiree, a widow, and the mother of three adult children. After my release, I ended up in forced emigration and am now trying to survive.
I spent my whole life in Belarus. I openly expressed my civic stance and did not remain silent when I witnessed injustice. In 2020, like my children, I could not stay on the sidelines. When people asked me why I had “gone against the authorities” instead of “keeping quiet,” I explained that I could not calmly watch people being humiliated and their lives destroyed.
I was arrested in January 2022 and never returned home after that. First, I was tried in the “round dance case,” then came new charges, trials, and sentences. I was sent to a psychiatric institution and then returned to detention again. Another criminal case was opened against me already in prison. In total, I spent four and a half years behind bars.
I went through prison at retirement age. That is difficult in itself, but even harder is understanding that during this time not only your health is destroyed, but your entire former life as well. After imprisonment, you do not return to the point from which you were once taken, but to a completely different reality where you no longer have the strength or the support system you once had.
On December 13, 2025, I was released as part of a large group. It was not a release in the full sense of the word. We were effectively thrown out of the country: forcibly taken out of Belarus with nothing, without any understanding of what would happen next, where I would live, or how I would survive.
I am currently in Poland, in Wrocław. I live very modestly and think not about any big plans, but about the simplest things: how to pay rent, buy food and clothes, and survive the coming months. I lost my Belarusian retirement benefits. There is some assistance in Poland, but it is very limited. The money is only enough to literally keep me from starving. This is not an exaggeration, but my daily reality.
Believe me, what is especially difficult is that I always tried to cope on my own and help others, and now I am forced to ask for help for myself. But today this is not a matter of comfort, but of survival. At my age, after imprisonment, deteriorating health, and forced emigration, I need support simply to avoid falling into complete poverty.
My family is scattered across different countries and is itself living in difficult circumstances. Therefore, I cannot rely on my children in the way people normally do in old age. Each of them is dealing with their own problems related to emigration and safety.
I am asking for help with money for rent, food, clothes, and other basic necessities. I only need a minimal safety cushion to get through this period after prison and forced displacement.
For me, this assistance is an opportunity to preserve my human dignity and survive the hardest stage after release.
Fundraising goal
€2500
€1400 – housing rent
€1100 – food, clothing, and basic daily expenses