Legalize Belarus Celebrates 7th Anniversary and Prepares for Founding Assembly
The Legalize Belarus movement, founded in 2017 as an informal initiative by activists advocating for the humanization of Belarusian drug policy, has announced plans to formalize its activities at a founding meeting on December 8, 2024, in Poznań, Poland. The organization aims to ensure long-term sustainability and continuity of leadership by adopting a charter and introducing mechanisms to prevent conflicts of interest.
Everything began in 2016 when Arciom Barodzič, an actor at the Janka Kupała Theatre, was sentenced to a long prison term for possessing cannabis for personal use. That same year, Klim Małažavy, the lead singer of the reggae band Botanic Project, was also imprisoned. These events outraged a group of friends who were members of organizations such as the Movement “For Freedom,” Dzeja, and Students For Liberty Belarus at the time. They decided to form an initiative group to launch a public campaign aimed at influencing public opinion and the authorities to humanize Belarusian drug policy.
The official beginning of Legalize Belarus is considered to be August 13, 2017, when, together with Lithuanian youth from Lietuvos liberalus jaunimas, we attended the Hanfparade (“Hemp Parade”) in Berlin. In the following years, we conducted over 50 public events, including three offline schools on humane drug policy, created a documentary film and a series of other audiovisual materials on our topic, developed a draft law proposal on decriminalization, conducted a detailed analysis of Belarusian drug policy and issued an analytical document, launched a legal support service for those persecuted under Article 328, received over 500 mentions in local, national, and international media, and advocated for humane drug policy both within the Belarusian third sector and on the international stage.
It is important to note that the start of the campaign would have been impossible without the sincere and unburdensome support of the international libertarian network Students For Liberty, as well as pro bono and financial contributions from private individuals interested in addressing the issue of Article 328 in Belarus.
Throughout this time, the organization operated without a formal structure and rules, which allowed us to minimize costs by avoiding excessive bureaucracy. However, to ensure long-term sustainability and continuity of management, we concluded that the time has come to hold a founding meeting, approve a charter, introduce the institution of membership, and outline the procedure for joining the organization. The charter will include mechanisms that ensure a balance of power within the organization, effectively addressing potential conflicts of interest, which is particularly relevant for the modern Belarusian non-profit sector. For example, members of the elected Legalize Belarus Council will not be allowed to receive a salary for fulfilling managerial duties within the organization.
The anticipated date of the founding meeting is December 8, 2024. We will soon publish the program and information on how to join this event.
Happy birthday, friends! Onwards and upwards!
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