Georgia denies asylum to Belarusian dissident

September 5, Pozirk. Georgia has denied political asylum to Maryna Zialonaja (Kalinina) of the Belarusian opposition Coordination Council.
“My child and I qualify [for protection] under the 1951 Geneva Convention on Refugees, but we do not qualify from the perspective of the Georgian State Security Service,” she said on Facebook.
Zialonaja, a kickboxing and Thai boxing coach, noted that she wants to appeal to the country’s Ombudsman.
In August, Georgia denied asylum to Raman Kiślak, a Belarusian human rights activist. The migration office said that his presence ran counter to Georgia’s interests.
Kiślak and Zialonaja staged pickets in Tbilisi in an attempt to cut through the migration office’s red tape.
Kiślak said that Georgia had rejected applications from several Belarusian asylum seekers before.
In the spring of 2024, the Belarusian Investigative Committee opened criminal cases against all 257 candidates for the Coordination Council.
- PoliticsReprisals: jailed media managers among dozens branded “extremists”The material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics
- Security, SocietyAir raid alert in Lithuania’s Vilnius county near Belarus borderThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsCichanoŭskaja looking for ideas ahead of New Belarus ConferenceThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Economy, PoliticsBelarus wood pellet industry in deep crisis following EU sanctions and failed evasion attempts, report saysThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Economy, SocietyPole gets 30 months in prison for smuggling Belarusian cigarettesThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics, SecurityEnding Ukraine war hinges on several people, Łukašenka saysThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Society, SportUkraine urges 30 international federations to maintain restrictions on Belarusian athletesThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsHouse of Representatives approves ratification bill for agreement with Togo on visa-free travel for officialsThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- SocietyBelarus to repair road at Bieniakoni checkpoint until July – border committeeThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Society
- PoliticsLithuania's top diplomat pushes for EU sanctions on Łukašenka's regimeThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Economy
- Economy, SocietyPoland cracks down on cigarette smuggling ring linked to BelarusThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsŁukašenka seeks expanded ties, visa facilitation with PhilippinesThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsMinsk blames EU sanctions for irregular migration crisis since 2021The material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics
- PoliticsReprisals: KGB intensifies raids on blacklisted university’s alumni and familiesThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics, SocietyŁukašenka allocates $1.2 million for restoring Orthodox monastery, $94,000 landmark Catholic churchThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics, SocietyŁukašenka tells media newly appointed official to keep up propagandaThe material is available only to POZIRK+



