English

Death of Henadz Hrushavy is loss to Belarus' civil society, associate says

The untimely demise of Henadz Hrushavy is an irreplaceable loss to not only Platform Innovation but also to the entire civil society of Belarus, Andrey Bandarenka, the founder and leader of Platform Innovation, an organization engaged in the monitoring and protection of prisoners’ rights, told BelaPAN.

Dr. Hrushavy, one of the founders of the Belarusian Popular Front and the founder and chairman of the Foundation for the Children of Chernobyl, died in a Minsk hospital on Tuesday at the age of 63.

"He was a genius. He was an excellent leader and a remarkable personality who is hard to replace," Mr. Bandarenka said. "He was a person who could unite people with absolutely different views in just a few seconds and inspire them. He was a person who had great experience and who could foresee things and was able to give advice at the right time. This is a devastating loss to us all."

Dr. Hrushavy had a lot of ideas and plans and wanted the opposition camp in Belarus to "become what it should be," Mr. Bandarenka noted.

"He often used the term ‘commercial opposition’ and was very displeased with what was going on among opposition circles," Mr. Bandarenka said. "He wanted those who work for the good of our citizens to understand that it was a responsible job. He wanted really strong and promising organizations to emerge in our country to make our citizens feel that they have rights and liberties, and that they can have a better future rather than the one forced upon them by the government."

Mr. Bandarenka noted that Platform Innovation was privileged to have Dr. Hrushavy as its member. "We knew that we were doing right things if such people joined us. And he was pleased to be part of this process," Mr. Bandarenka said.

Platform Innovation activists knew that Dr. Hrushavy had leukemia and tried to support him in every way they could, Mr. Bandarenka said.

He added that Dr. Hrushavy had often stayed in Germany for treatment and that he had "lived in hope and this hope gave him strength."