BE RU EN

"In The Twenty-first Century, No One Should Have To Live In Such Conditions"

  • 23.06.2025, 8:39

The Estonian told about the conditions of detention in the Belarusian prison.

Estonian citizen Alan Roja was released from the Belarusian prison thanks to the diplomatic efforts of the United States. He arrived in Estonia on the evening of Saturday, June 21. He arrived in Tallinn on an evening flight from Helsinki.

He was met at the Tallinn airport by loved ones, Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna, and an ambulance whose doctors examined Roja for back pain, Postimees reported.

He was exhausted but moved to tears. Roja had been in detention since last January. The Belarusian regime suspected him of creating an extremist organization, and a court sentenced him to six and a half years in prison and a fine of nearly 6,000 euros.

Roya explained that he was arrested in Belarus after he set up a charity to support families unhappy with the country's election results.

"The local dictator ordered to leave these people without work and without food," he said after arriving in Estonia. He added that since he himself is a father of many children and his wife is a Belarusian citizen, he felt obliged to help these families.

The MTÜ Fund of Belarusian Friends, a non-profit organization established in September 2020, has now been liquidated.

"I registered the fund in the UK and in Estonia. The British fund started to act faster, and through it I managed to help quite a lot of people," Roy said.

Before the Belarusian authorities got on the trail of the fund, Roy's wife managed to inform the banks about what was going on. The accounts were frozen, and the Belarusian authorities could not get access to them.

"We managed to help the first 140 families so that their children could go to school. As far as I know - and to the great displeasure of the Belarusian authorities - they have not been able to find a single family that we have helped," Roya said. He added that the conditions in which he was held were inhumane.

"Being behind bars is one thing, but since 2021, I was actually a hostage in Belarus. I was treated very badly. Most likely, I will make it my life's work and tell human rights organizations about the conditions in which people are kept there. In the XXI century, no one should live in such conditions," he said.

Roya also personally thanked Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkun. "If it wasn't for you, I would probably still be there," he said.

Tsahkna said work on the Estonian citizen's release had been underway for almost a year and a half. "In January 2024, we received information that the Belarusian authorities had detained an Estonian citizen in Minsk. Since then, the embassy and diplomats have been in constant contact with Roy and his family," the minister said.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Estonia strongly recommends to refrain from traveling to Belarus, and those Estonian citizens who are there temporarily, urges to reconsider the need to stay and return home if possible.

Latest news