The protests and government repression, which started in Belarus after the election changed the majority of the population lives and view of the world. Young people who are most opposed to the old one, the dictatorship of the regime's survival, life in the most bitter. Many students who no longer had the opportunity to continue their studies in Belarus quietly decided to seek their happiness abroad. University also offered to facilitate access for Belarusians to study in our university. Chemical and geosciences faculty also received a few students who are most interested in Pharmaceutical Chemistry Master's program. Hanna Klipan, a new member of our faculty community, also talks about her life in Belarus and the impressions she had when she came to Lithuania.

Government cruelty and violence personally touched every citizen of the country

Hanna was born and raised in a small Belarusian town, Zhlobin, and after her 18th birthday, she entered the Faculty of Chemical Sciences of the Belarusian State University. Recalling her undergraduate studies, Hanna shares that "throughout my studies I tried not only to acquire theoretical knowledge, but also to develop as many practical skills as possible, to learn new things". The peaceful, student life was interrupted by the protests that began in the country immediately after the elections, as well as by new austerity measures for students - "the events that began after the elections became real national grief for all Belarusians".

"After the well-known events of August 9-12, when the special police department arrested, beat, raped and tortured civilians who peacefully took to the streets to protest against election fraud, it became clear that the lives of Belarusians will never be the same" – Hanna recalls that the events personally affected every inhabitant of Belarus. Emphasizes that these events have changed the attitude of the majority of the population not only to the government and its actions, but also to the personal attitudes and priorities of each person's life - "when you see violence and pain with your own eyes, there is no doubt".  The brutality with which the government wanted to suppress peaceful protests shocked the whole world and became a major bloody spot in Belarusian history. Unprecedented cases of violence against women, children and the elderly have led to legitimate defaults - "the situation in Belarus is now more similar to the 1990s, when disappearances and killings were commonplace." Of course, dictatorship without human support cannot last forever, so Hanna stresses that all Belarusians continue to fight for their legitimate right to freedom despite government violence and lies.

The repression against youth has led thousands of students to seek happiness abroad

As protests in Belarus have subsided since August, the dictatorial regime has been desperately looking for ways to quell the unrest in the country during this period. In September, it began repression against teachers, students, doctors, as well as any other profession people who massively distributed and recorded video condemning the violence, which were given to foreign governments and from which was expected any help. At the time, it became clear that "it is impossible to work and study in fear". Hanna, who, like the other students, suffered the repressions, recalls – "when people in black balaclavas come to the institute where you work and hunt down students with any national white-red-white symbols or students who came out to the action with posters against violence in the courtyard of the university, you understand that this can affect you at any time". During this period, in the student's opinion, the most rational solution was to find a university abroad and pursue a master's degree there. Then she found out about Vilnius University - "I learned about the university in Vilnius from the advertisement on Instagram, and later from my friends".

A completely different approach to science and students – the best feature of Vilnius University

After the first visit to Vilnius, the Hanna made a very striking impression on the beautiful and ancient architecture of the city - "and there are still many places in the city that still need to be seen and I believe that they will be even more surprised by their beauty". Also Vilnius University made a great impression not only because of its ancient architecture, but most of all because of the "sensitive and friendly people who study and work at it". The student is convinced that our University is the place that will help her discover new things and develop her abilities. “The modern approach to teaching and the huge number of different opportunities for students perhaps fundamentally distinguish the Lithuanian teaching model from the Belarusian model. As a chemist, I was also impressed by the availability of expensive equipment and modern laboratories, which allow us to organize work comfortably and efficiently”- these are the main aspects that distinguish Hanna when comparing her studies in Lithuania and Belarus. It should be noted that she believes that the chosen Pharmaceutical Chemistry study program  is a very promising and interesting field of chemical science, which will allow her to not only do advanced and important things, but also enjoy her studies.