Natalia Makavetskaya worked as a teacher in Vitebsk. She lived an ordinary life and raised her children. In September 2020 she became the mother of a political prisoner, lost her job, hid from law enforcers and eventually was forced to emigrate. She is now in Poland, awaiting a decision on her status, and is in need of support.
“My son was arrested and six months later convicted,” Natalia recalls. “The day after the verdict was announced, I was detained too. Temporary detention centre, a court hearing via Skype, a fine under Art. 23.34 of the Administrative Code.”
After the court hearing, the school administration forced the teacher to resign. To support her family and help her son in the correctional facility, the woman washed floors and dishes in restaurants, worked in a funeral service, wove wreaths and sold funeral supplies.
The year 2020 brought many Belarusians together – above all, the parents of political prisoners who supported each other morally and financially. “Without the help of compassionate Belarusians, it would have been very hard for me,” Natalia stresses. “I met many family members of political prisoners. They are intelligent, brave, caring people who, despite the difficulties, supported one another.”
The solidarity of family members drew the attention of law enforcers: “In their logic, by helping ‘extremists’ you become an ‘extremist’ too. And it does not matter that this is your own family member,” Natalia laments. Repression against parents of political prisoners began. For several months the woman moved from place to place and lived in other cities, fearing detention.
In December 2024, plainclothes officers came to Natalia’s home. A six-hour interrogation, a search, and a direct hint that “we will meet again in a week.” Natalia realised she had no time left and decided to leave the country.
In Poland, she applied for international protection. However, the Polish authorities, guided by the Dublin Regulation, decided to transfer her case to the Czech Republic, which had issued her Schengen visa. “But I don’t have a single close person in the Czech Republic,” Natalia says. “And here I can learn the language and start working more quickly.”
With the help of a lawyer, the Belarusian woman filed an appeal and is waiting for the decision. As long as she has no status, she cannot work officially. Natalia borrowed money to pay for legal assistance. She also urgently needs a hearing aid: a complication after the flu caused sensorineural hearing loss. “Without a hearing aid I cannot properly learn Polish, and without the language I cannot get a job,” she explains.
In November Natalia turned 55. She admits: “I never thought it would be so difficult to ask for help. All my life I helped others myself. But now the situation is almost hopeless. And I believe that if we managed to support each other in Belarus, right under the noses of law enforcers, then we will manage here too.”
Fundraising goal
€2000
€1000 – payment for legal services
€1000 – room rent and costs of purchasing a hearing aid