About the Speaker
Tatsiana
Khomich
Belarusian activist and sister of political prisoner Maria Kalesnikava
Tatsiana Khomich, a Belarusian activist, joined the team of Viktar Babaryka, the most popular presidential candidate during the 2020 elections, employing her career skills in IT to head the campaign’s media team. Her life changed after her sister, Maria Kalesnikava, was placed in detention in September 2020. Since then, Khomich has been an advocate for Belarusian political prisoners. She has delivered testimony at the most prestigious platforms, including President Joe Biden’s recent Summit for Democracy, the Geneva Human Rights Platform, the European Parliament, the US Congress, and national European parliaments. She has coordinated activities to encourage parliamentarians to “adopt” political prisoners in Belarus. In 2021, she was awarded the John McCain Award from the International Republican Institute for fighting for democracy.