Hello! I will call myself Marina, as I can't give my real name. My older sister has stayed in Belarus and she is under political persecution. I have evacuated to Lithuania with my parents and I would like to ask you for help.
In 2020, my family participated in rallies and solidarity chains, my mom went to women's marches, and we all wrote comments in Telegram. For this, my mom (for some reason only her) was criminally prosecuted and put on a wanted list. We were unaware of this and were living quietly at home when in May 2023 the law enforcers came to search our house. My older sister tried to intervene, but they threw her on the floor, handcuffed her and took her to Okrestina for several days. My mom was also taken away for questioning.
At first mom was charged with 3 articles. But after checking her phone and numerous interrogations (mom was summoned to them for almost half a year) they added 2 more articles and the investigator promised that she would be given 5 years in prison. We lost all hope that we would be left alone and with the help of BYSOL we evacuated to Lithuania. That was exactly one year ago.
In the middle of the school year of my last year of high school, no Lithuanian school accepted me. Then my parents transferred me to online education. However, Lithuania did not want to recognize the diploma of the online school. Therefore, I could not enter a university, and I could not work without a school-leaving certificate either.
But we found a way out: I applied to a university in Latvia, where my online school diploma was recognized. But there was a new problem: I needed to rent my own accommodation in Riga.
My parents in Lithuania are already struggling to make ends meet, and they can't move to Latvia to live with me. Therefore, I had to grow up quickly and take life into my own hands, although recently I was a schoolgirl and life did not put such tasks in front of me. I ask you to help me with rent for this school year. I am afraid to lose my studies, and none of us can return to Belarus anymore.
It is difficult for me to cope with this challenge alone, and I ask for your help to keep the opportunity to study and move on. Any support is not just help with housing, but time to learn how to be independent. Thank you for your kindness and consideration!
How much is needed?
€4000
€4000 — 10 months (school year) of rent in Riga. I borrowed some of this money in September and now I realize that it is difficult for me to pay back the debt and continue to pay the rent. But I have already found a job, so I support myself in everything else. In the future I plan to get a better-paid job and learn how to support myself and my housing.