Experts sound alarm over Germany’s move to end funding for Belarusian historical research

October 21, Pozirk. The German Association for East European Studies (DGO) criticized the German foreign ministry’s intentions to discontinue funding to the Belarusian Historical Research Forum in 2026.

“We view this decision as highly concerning, particularly given the current political climate,” it said in a statement released yesterday. “In Belarus, the regime manipulates history to legitimize the authoritarian rule, criminalizing critical research through laws such as the one on the genocide of the Belarusian people. The regime’s portrayal of World War II, in particular, serves to foster hostile narratives of the West. These historical policies not only distort the past but also align with Russian narratives that undermine Belarusian sovereignty and challenge the European order.”

Historians who oppose these narratives face reprisals and potentially lengthy prison terms, the DGO stressed. Independent research is now nearly impossible within Belarus due to the growing political control and atmosphere of fear fostered by Alaksandar Łukašenka.

Researchers have been forced into exile fearing politically-motivated persecution with many sentenced to long prison terms for their statements and political analysis, without being present at trials, the statement said. 

The Belarusian Historical Research Forum, founded by the DGO in 2022, represents a key tool in opposing the instrumentalization of history, promoting academic integrity, international cooperation and broader public awareness, while focusing on the most politicized themes, such as the history of violence in the 20th century, the experts said. 

The Forum also facilitates integration of Belarusian researchers into the European academic networks, helps maintain contact with independent historians in Belarus and supports academics at risk, the DGO noted. 

Hundreds of scholars resigned for political reasons and fled Belarus after the 2020 postelection protests as authorities in Belarus equated criticism and independent research to extremism and terrorism.

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