Anatol Kotau and his family have been in Poland since 2020, after he condemned the brutal actions of Aleksander Lukashenko's services towards protesters against the fake presidential elections. An open opposition to the actions of the Belarusian dictator meant that Kotau was forced to leave the country. In Poland, he was involved in the activities of the Belarusian democratic opposition.
Importantly, Kotau was previously a collaborator of the regime of the President of Belarus. Initially, he worked at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, later also at the Belarusian embassy in Warsaw and the National Olympic Committee, where he was the secretary general.
The return took place in 2020. Kotau was accused in his homeland of extremist activity and conspiracy against the regime. He was sentenced to 12 years of labor camps in absentia – he describes “RZ”.
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The Belarusian oppositionist left Poland. The trace of him was lost
The trace of Kotau disappeared when he went to Istanbul on August 21. Aleksander Apeikin, head of the supporting repressed Belarusian athletes of the Solidarity Solidarity Foundation, with whom Kotau cooperated, said in an interview with the journal that he has no contact with the oppositionist and it is not known what is happening to him. The Turkish police and the Polish consulate in Istanbul were notified of the disappearance.
This is not the first case when the opponent of the Belarusian dictator suddenly disappears. The previous case took place at the end of March this year. Then the chairwoman of the opposition coordination council of Belarus Andżelik Mielnikawa disappeared. At the same time, over 100,000 also disappeared. euro from the foundation managed by it, which was financed by Western institutions. Mielnikawa also disappeared during the trip. She went to London, from where she flew to Dubai. There, contact with her broke off. Later, the media showed that she met with an officer of Belarusian services using a false passport.
Paweł Łytuszka, deputy head of the United Transitional United Cabinet, which was previously a Belarusian diplomat and minister of culture, in an interview with “RZ” emphasizes that Lukashenko's services “conduct an open war with Belarusian democratic institutions that operate in Poland or Lithuania.” – They try to discredit, blackmail, recruit, intimidate and even organize attacks – he adds and points out that the Belarusian regime persecutes oppositionists even in emigration.
