Since the beginning of 2026, the regime's senior religious affairs official, Plenipotentiary Aleksandr Rumak, has refused bishops' requests for at least a dozen Polish Catholic priests to be allowed to continue their religious service in the country. The denials were handed to the bishops of all four of Belarus' Roman Catholic dioceses. Most of the priests had served for several decades in Belarus. One - Fr Marian Szerszeń - had served in the country for 36 years.

Some of the priests have already returned to Poland. Others remain in Belarus as their bishops hope to persuade Plenipotentiary Rumak to change his mind. (A list of the 10 priests and 1 friar whose names are publicly known is at the foot of this article.)

At least one of the priests - Franciscan priest Fr Lech Bachanek - has decided to apply for Belarusian citizenship. If granted, he would have to renounce Polish citizenship, but his bishop would no longer need to ask Plenipotentiary Rumak at least every year (or possibly every three or six months) for permission for him to be allowed to continue to conduct religious activity (see below).

Forum 18 asked Deputy Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs Sergei Gerasimenya why Rumak had refused permission for the Polish priests to continue serving in Belarus. "We give no comments," he told Forum 18. "That's all I can say." He then put the phone down (see below).

Yevgeny Levshik, deputy head of the Ideology and Youth Chief Directorate of Grodno Regional Executive Committee (which has responsibility for overseeing religion in the Region), repeatedly refused to say why officials had refused to allow Fr Zbigniew Dragula and three other priests of the Grodno Catholic Diocese to continue service. "I recommend you to study the law." He then put the phone down. He did not respond to a follow-up written question (see below).

Speaking in May, while on a visit to Rome, Archbishop Iosif Stanevsky of Minsk-Mogilev described the issue of personnel for the Catholic Church in Belarus as "acute". He noted the decline in the number of priests. "The situation is further complicated by the fact that priests from Poland, who have served for decades, are increasingly not allowed to continue their work" (see below).

Exiled human rights defender and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski, a Catholic, notes that denial of permission for Polish priests to continue serving in Belarus creates serious problems for the country's Catholic community. "The consequences of this policy are very negative," he said. "The shortage of clergy has deepened. Already now priests are forced to take care of several parishes at the same time." He noted that some Catholic priests who are Belarusian citizens had also been forced to flee the country (see below).

Unapproved religious activity by foreign citizens is illegal and punishable. The regime has long expressed the intention to reduce the number of foreign citizens allowed to conduct religious activity in the country. The Orthodox Church has the highest number of foreign citizens in such roles, with the Roman Catholic Church a close second (see below).

Orthodox spokespeople did not respond to Forum 18's questions as to whether their bishops' applications to Plenipotentiary Rumak for permission for religious activity for any of their foreign religious personnel have been rejected. One spokesperson deleted Forum 18's written questions soon after they were sent (see below).

Other priests who are Polish citizens remain in the Minsk-Mogilev Archdiocese for now, "though it is unclear for how long". Plenipotentiary Rumak renews or revokes their permits every six months. "In any case, the current trend is clear," independent Catholic news outlet Katolik.life noted. "There is an exodus of Polish priests from Belarus - a country already facing a critical shortage of clergy, where many priests are forced to serve multiple parishes at once" (see below).

The Christian Vision group, which documents violations of freedom of religion or belief and other human rights, has also raised the issue. It said that amid public claims of co-operation between the Catholic Church and the state, "hidden processes continue that neither one side nor the other are keen to advertise".

(The regime has declared to be "extremist" the social media sites and logo of the Christian Vision group. The regime has similarly listed Katolik.life's website and social media channels as "extremist".)

Plenipotentiary's unchallenged power

Only registered religious associations (headquarter bodies) are allowed to invite foreign citizens for any public religious activity. If the state grants such permission, it is only valid for the one specific religious community for which the headquarter body has obtained it. Individual religious communities are not themselves allowed to apply for such permission.

Under regulations approved by a 2 July 2024 Council of Ministers Decree, the Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs (the regime's senior religious affairs official) in Minsk gives or refuses permission for foreign citizens to work for religious purposes (whether as a resident or as a visitor).

Foreign citizens must demonstrate sufficient knowledge of Belarus' state languages (Belarusian and Russian) in order to perform religious work. The Plenipotentiary defines the period of permission (up to one year), can at any time withdraw permission, and is not obliged to communicate the reasons for a refusal.

The Plenipotentiary can consult the regional Executive Committee's [local authority] Ideology Department in deciding whether or not to give permission for a foreign religious worker to work.

The Plenipotentiary may refuse permission for a foreign religious worker to conduct religious work without giving any reason. Such decisions are entirely within the Plenipotentiary's power and are difficult for the headquarter bodies which have invited them to challenge.

If the headquarter body's request is granted, the Plenipotentiary issues a decision specifying in which single religious community the foreign citizen can work, and the exact dates for which permission is given (usually three months, six months, or one year).

"Religious associations that have invited foreigners to Belarus to carry out religious activities may send them only to religious organisations that are part of their structure and specified in the decision of the Plenipotentiary," the regulations note.

Legally-resident foreign citizens who are not religious workers are banned from any active participation – as against passive attendance – in religious communities. Two warnings within one year or the failure to end a "violation" can lead to the stripping of a community's registration and so permission to legally exist.

Plenipotentiary Aleksandr Rumak takes all decisions as to whether to grant or withhold permission for foreign citizens personally, officials have repeatedly told Forum 18. Such decisions are communicated directly to the religious leader who has applied to invite the foreigners.

A religious leader unhappy with such a denial could challenge the decision – like any other official decision – by lodging a case within a month in the courts. Forum 18 is not aware of any such challenges in recent years.

If Plenipotentiary Rumak grants such permission to conduct religious work, he also specifies the time for which such permission is valid. The maximum time period is one year, but can often be as short as three months. This means that religious leaders seeking to renew such permission for foreign citizens have to lodge paperwork frequently, with no guarantee that Rumak will approve their application, even if an individual has served in Belarus for many years.

If Plenipotentiary Rumak grants such permission to a foreign citizen, the Regional Executive Committee's Ideology, Culture and Youth Department will then issue a certificate. This specifies in which single religious community the individual can work, and the exact dates for which permission is given (usually three months, six months or one year).

Orthodox, Catholics mainly affected

The regime has long expressed the intention to reduce the number of foreign citizens allowed to conduct religious activity in the country. The Orthodox Church has the highest number of foreign citizens in such roles, with the Roman Catholic Church a close second.

Information on the Plenipotentiary's website, which appears to date from 1 January 2024, says that of the 3,725 clergy then working in the country, 127 were foreigners. Of these, 59 were Orthodox, 56 were Catholic, with the remaining 12 unidentified (presumably including the priests of two registered communities in Minsk known to be led by foreign citizens: the Armenian Apostolic Church, and the Traditional Latin Rite community of the Society of Saint Pius X). Officials do not appear to have published more recent statistics.

Orthodox spokespeople did not respond to Forum 18's questions in mid-July 2026 as to whether their bishops' applications to Plenipotentiary Rumak for permission for religious activity for any of their foreign religious personnel have been rejected. One spokesperson deleted Forum 18's written questions soon after they were sent.

Protestant churches as well as Jehovah's Witness communities have told Forum 18 that they do not need foreign citizens to come to live in Belarus to conduct religious work.

Plenipotentiary Aleksandr Rumak's predecessor Leonid Gulyako refused Protestant and Catholic communities permission to invite specific individuals from abroad on short visits to take part in religious meetings.

Plenipotentiary Rumak did give permission for several visiting Americans to conduct religious activity at the high-profile Protestant Festival of Hope at the Chizhovka Arena in Minsk in mid-May 2026.

Archbishop: Polish priests "increasingly not allowed to continue their work"

Catholic leaders have repeatedly criticised provisions that allow officials to reject applications for clergy and members of religious orders from abroad to serve local communities. In 2017, the then head of the Catholic Church in Belarus, Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz, called for the state to end the requirement that foreign citizens need permission to conduct any religious activity.

Speaking in May 2026 while on a visit to Rome, Archbishop Iosif Stanevsky of Minsk-Mogilev described the issue of personnel for the Catholic Church in Belarus as "acute".

"The number of clergy in Belarus itself is gradually decreasing, especially in the eastern regions. In Mogilev Region, one priest is forced to serve three parishes, covering hundreds of kilometres," he said in a Vatican Radio interview broadcast on 28 May. (The Church's website in Belarus reproduced the report of the interview the same day.)

"The situation is further complicated by the fact that priests from Poland, who have served for decades, are increasingly not allowed to continue their work," Archbishop Stanevsky added.

Since the beginning of 2026, the regime's senior religious affairs official, Plenipotentiary Aleksandr Rumak, has refused bishops' requests for at least a dozen Polish Catholic priests to be allowed to continue their religious service in the country.

Plenipotentiary Rumak handed the denials to the bishops of all four of Belarus' Roman Catholic dioceses, first in Pinsk Diocese, then in Vitebsk Diocese, then in Minsk-Mogilev Archdiocese, then in Grodno Diocese. Most of the priests had served for several decades in Belarus (see below).

Forum 18 asked Deputy Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs Sergei Gerasimenya why Rumak had refused permission for the Polish priests to continue serving in Belarus. "We give no comments," he told Forum 18 on 15 July. "That's all I can say." He then put the phone down.

Bialiatski: "The consequences of this policy are very negative"

Exiled human rights defender and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski, a Catholic, has noted that denial of permission for Polish priests to continue serving in Belarus creates serious problems for the country's Catholic community.

"The consequences of this policy are very negative," Bialiatski told the Polish Catholic weekly Gość Niedzielny in an interview published on 2 July. "The shortage of clergy has deepened. Already now priests are forced to take care of several parishes at the same time."

Bialiatski pointed out that since 2020 some Belarusian Catholic priests have also been forced to leave the country and cannot continue serving in their homeland.

(Bialiatski was a political prisoner. The regime released him and exiled him to Lithuania on 13 December 2025.)

Minsk-Mogilev Diocese: Plenipotentiary rejects applications for five priests, one friar to continue service

Plenipotentiary Aleksandr Rumak has rejected Archbishop Iosif Stanevsky's requests for five Polish Catholic priests and one friar – who had served for many years in the country - to continue their service in Minsk-Mogilev Archdiocese, Katolik.life noted on 21 May. The archdiocese covers central and eastern Belarus.

Two of those forced to end their religious service had earlier faced refusals from the then Plenipotentiary Leonid Gulyako. In both cases, Gulyako overturned his refusals after protests (see below).

Plenipotentiary Rumak refused the archbishop's request for Fr Bogusław Madżejewski to be allowed to continue his religious service. He had most recently been parish priest in Svir and dean of Myadel Deanery. He had served in Belarus for 30 years and is now forced to return to Poland.

On 5 July, St Nicholas parish in Svir held a farewell Mass for Fr Madżejewski. Three hierarchs came to see off the priest: Archbishop Stanevsky, Archbishop Emeritus Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz, and Vicar General Bishop Yuri Kasabutsky.

The archdiocese reported the farewell Mass, but under the headline "In Svir, with the participation of hierarchs, the priest was thanked for 30 years of service in Belarus". The archdiocese made no mention that Fr Madżejewski was leaving. It mentioned only that he "will continue his service in the Warsaw-Praga diocese (Poland), to which he canonically belongs". It gave no reason for the ending of his service in Belarus.

Plenipotentiary Rumak similarly refused the archbishop's request for Fr Marian Szerszeń to be allowed to continue his religious service. He was priest in Naliboki, where he restored the church, and dean of Stolbtsy. Archbishop Stanevsky thanked him for his 36 years of service in Belarus at a farewell Mass in early July. This time the Archdiocese made clear that it had been the state that had cut short his service in the parish.

"The community of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary parish in Naliboki (Stolbtsy deanery) thanked and said goodbye to their long-time pastor, Canon Marian Szerszeń, due to the disagreement with the relevant state authorities over the priest's right to conduct religious activity," the Archdiocese noted on its website on 10 July in its report of the farewell Mass.

Fr Sobiesław Tomala, parish priest of St Francis Church in Soligorsk, had recently celebrated the 35th anniversary of his priestly ordination when Plenipotentiary Rumak refused the archbishop's request for him to be allowed to continue his religious service, Katolik.life noted on 21 May. Fr Tomala, who had served in Belarus for more than 25 years, built St Francis Church.

At the beginning of 2019, the then Plenipotentiary Gulyako banned Fr Tomala from continuing to serve in the country beyond 31 January 2019. After more than 300 people signed a petition calling for their priest to be allowed to remain, Gulyako changed his decision and extended the permission for six months. Permission was extended further on multiple occasions.

Fr Tomala's parishioners are again "actively reacting", Katolik.life noted on 21 May 2026. "A great woe has befallen our religious community: our dear parish priest has been refused further religious activity in Belarus with no reasons being given," the parish wrote on Instagram. "Today our parish cannot imagine itself without this individual."

The parish called for all to "raise the alarm in all ways" and to write to officials. It gave the address of the Presidential Administration, Minsk Regional Executive Committee and the Apostolic Nunciature in Minsk. The post was deleted within days.

Plenipotentiary Rumak also refused the archbishop's request for Fr Paweł Lialita to be allowed to continue his religious service. He had been priest of St Andrew the Apostle parish in Naroch in Minsk Region.

Plenipotentiary Rumak also refused the archbishop's request for Franciscan priest Fr Lech Bachanek to be allowed to continue his religious service. He was priest of the parish of St Alexy in Ivanets and had served in Belarus for more than 25 years.

In 2016, then Plenipotentiary Gulyako had refused permission for Fr Bachanek to continue religious service in Belarus. He changed his decision only after Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz issued a public complaint.

Fr Bachanek is lodging an application for Belarusian citizenship. If granted, this would allow him to continue religious service without his bishop needing to ask Plenipotentiary Rumak for permission at regular intervals.

Plenipotentiary Rumak also refused the bishop's request for Polish Capuchin friar, Brother Wojciech Wróblewski, to be allowed to continue service in the diocese. He served initially in Dokshytsi and later in Molodechno.

"Believers learned that local authorities had recently warned some of these priests that their permits would not be renewed," Katolik.life noted on 21 May, "and that, to remain in the country, they must submit the necessary documents to obtain Belarusian citizenship."

Other priests who are Polish citizens remain in the Minsk-Mogilev Archdiocese for now, "though it is unclear for how long". Plenipotentiary Rumak renews or revokes their permits every six months. "In any case, the current trend is clear," Katolik.life noted. "There is an exodus of Polish priests from Belarus - a country already facing a critical shortage of clergy, where many priests are forced to serve multiple parishes at once."

Grodno Diocese: Plenipotentiary rejects applications for four priests to continue service

Following earlier refusals to allow Polish Catholic priests to remain in Pinsk, Vitebsk and Minsk-Mogilev Roman Catholic dioceses, summer 2026 also saw refusals in Grodno diocese. The diocese covers western Belarus.

Plenipotentiary Aleksandr Rumak rejected Bishop Vladimir Gulyai's requests for at least four Polish Catholic priests – who had served for many years in the country - to continue their service in the diocese.

Fr Zbigniew Dragula, a priest of the Michaelite Order, had served in Belarus for 27 years, most recently in the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul parish in Starie Vasilishki in Shchuchin District. He left in early July, Christian Vision noted on 6 July.

The Grodno Diocese gave lengthy coverage of the farewell Mass for Fr Dragula. The diocesan website noted on 1 July that "after 27 years of fruitful service in Belarus, he is returning to his homeland – Poland".

"The liturgy was celebrated by the vice-chancellor of the curia of the Grodno diocese, Rev. Canon Antoni Gremza," the diocesan website said. "He arrived at the celebration at the special request of the bishop of Grodno, Vladimir Gulyai, with a letter of gratitude sent personally from the ordinary and from the bishop emeritus, Aleksandr Kashkevich."

The website made no mention that Plenipotentiary Rumak had rejected Bishop Gulyai's request for Fr Dragula to be allowed to continue serving in Belarus. Nor did Fr Dragula in his address at the farewell Mass. He attributed his departure to a decision of the leadership of his Order.

Plenipotentiary Rumak also rejected Bishop Gulyai's requests for at least three other Polish Catholic priests – who had served for many years in the country - to continue their service in the diocese. The bishop has asked the Plenipotentiary to reconsider his decision.

Yevgeny Levshik, deputy head of the Ideology and Youth Chief Directorate of Grodno Regional Executive Committee (which has responsibility for overseeing religion in the Region), repeatedly refused to say why officials had refused to allow these four priests to continue service in the Catholic diocese.

"There are Polish priests working here," Levshik insisted to Forum 18 from Grodno on 15 July. He refused to discuss the cases of Fr Dragula and the other three priests whose service has been ended. "I recommend you to study the law." He then put the phone down.

Forum 18 wrote to Levshik the same day, again asking again why officials had refused to allow these four priests to continue service in the Catholic diocese. Forum 18 had received no response by the end of the working day in Belarus of 16 July.

Vitebsk Diocese: One of three priests reprieved for 3 months

In May, Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs in Minsk, Aleksandr Rumak, refused permission for three Polish Catholic priests in the northern Vitebsk Diocese to continue their service in the country. The three – Fr Zenon Szcząchor, Fr Waldemar Kujawa and Fr Stanisław Mrzygłód – were required to end their religious service by later in May.

Plenipotentiary Rumak later extended Fr Mrzygłód's permission to serve in Belarus by three months, Katolik.life noted on 29 May. This permission is now due to end in August. "Believers are praying that this permission will be extended," Katolik.life added.

Forum 18 reached Marina Novitskaya, head of the Ideology and Youth Department of Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee (which has responsibility for overseeing religion in the Region), on 16 July. As soon as Forum 18 introduced itself and began asking about the rejection of the bishop's request for the foreign Catholic priests to continue their religious service, she put the phone down.

Applying for Belarusian citizenship

Officials told some foreign Catholic clergy that if they wish to remain and conduct religious activity they need to apply for Belarusian citizenship. Those acquiring Belarusian citizenship generally need to renounce their previous citizenship. However, some Catholics are sceptical – based on the earlier experience of others – that officials would grant citizenship to foreign Catholic clergy.

After he had lived and served in Belarus for more than 20 years, Polish citizen Fr Sławomir Laskowski applied for Belarusian citizenship in about 2012. Officials rejected the application.

Five years later, then Plenipotentiary Leonid Gulyako rejected the bishop's application to extend Fr Laskowski's permission to conduct religious activity in Belarus. In May 2017, Fr Laskowski held his last mass in the parish of the Nativity of the Most Holy Mother of God in Gomel after 28 years' service. He returned to Poland.

"Foreign priests who know the traditions, people and language are willing to serve in Belarus and seek citizenship, but get a denial," Fr Vyacheslav Barok complained to Forum 18 in May 2017. "They are treated like people of lesser value."

Remaining with no right to conduct religious activity

Foreign citizens need permission to live in Belarus. Several of the Catholic clergy for whom Plenipotentiary Aleksandr Rumak has denied permission to conduct religious activity but who live in Belarus legally intend to try to remain. Without this permission they cannot say Mass, preach or conduct other religious activity in public. They would be allowed to carry out administrative functions within a registered religious community.

Jesuit priest Fr Klemens Werth, who had been serving in Vitebsk Catholic diocese, left Belarus in June 2024 for further ministry in Kyrgyzstan. A Russian citizen, he had arrived in Belarus in 2015. His initial permission to work in a religious role finally ran out in November 2016. Then Plenipotentiary Leonid Gulyako repeatedly refused the local bishop's requests for Fr Werth to be allowed to work in a religious role. Gulyako ignored petitions from parishioners.

From November 2016, Fr Werth could serve only in an administrative role in the diocese. He also led work on building a new Catholic church of St Ignatius of Loyola in Vitebsk, which was consecrated in July 2022.

Arrests, exile of priests reduce number

The frequent arrests of Catholic clergy on a variety of charges – for shorter or longer periods - also reduces the number of priests able to serve in parishes.

On 16 March, masked security officers (apparently from the KGB) arrested the then 65-year-old Catholic priest Fr Anatol Parakhnevich in his parish in Alkovichi in Vileika District of Minsk Region, where he had served for nearly 20 years. He is being investigated on treason charges and remains in the KGB Investigation Prison in Minsk.

The regime arrested Fr Henryk Okolotovich in November 2023 and Fr Andrei Yukhnevich in May 2024. Courts handed both long sentences at closed trials. They were pardoned and freed from labour camp on 20 November 2025. They were immediately taken to Minsk airport and travelled to Rome. They both remain there, unable to return to resume their ministry in Belarus.

Police handcuffed and arrested Fr Yuriy Hrytsko of the Grodno Catholic Diocese in his parish in Derechinn in Zelve District on 9 July 2026. The following day the local court jailed him for 15 days.

"It is not yet known under which administrative or criminal case the priest was detained," a local human rights news site Garadzenskaya pravaabarona noted on 13 July. "All that is known is that before that, about 10 people from Poland and Germany came to see the priest in Dziarechyn - some priests, some laypeople. This is likely the reason for the detention."

Fr Vyacheslav Barok fled to neighbouring Poland in 2021 to escape prosecution. He is wanted in Belarus and Russia on criminal charges. Courts have declared his YouTube, Facebook and Telegram sites, his personal email address and TikTok account "extremist". The Interior Ministry has declared what it believes to be a one-person organisation "Priest Barok" "extremist" and banned.

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List of Polish Catholic priests forced to end religious service in Belarus in 2026

List of known Polish Catholic clergy (and one friar) forced to end religious service in Belarus in 2026: listed by name, inviting diocese, when forced to end service, years' service in Belarus. (Three others ordered to end their religious service in Grodno Diocese are not included.)

1) Fr Paweł Kruczek, Pinsk Diocese, March 2026, 20 years' service (left Belarus)

2) Fr Adam Straczyński, Pinsk Diocese, March 2026, 11 years' service (left Belarus)

3) Fr Zenon Szcząchor, Vitebsk Diocese, May 2026, 35 years' service

4) Fr Waldemar Kujawa, Vitebsk Diocese, May 2026, 30 years' service (left Belarus)

5) Fr Marian Szerszeń, Minsk-Mogilev Archdiocese, July 2026, 36 years' service (left Belarus)

6) Fr Sobiesław Tomala, Minsk-Mogilev Archdiocese, July 2026, 25 years' service

7) Fr Lech Bachanek, Minsk-Mogilev Archdiocese, July 2026, 25 years' service (lodging an application for Belarusian citizenship)

8) Fr Paweł Lialita, Minsk-Mogilev Archdiocese, July 2026

9) Fr Bogusław Madżejewski, Minsk-Mogilev Archdiocese, July 2026, 30 years' service (left Belarus)

10) Brother Wojciech Wróblewski, Minsk-Mogilev Archdiocese, July 2026

11) Fr Zbigniew Dragula, Grodno Diocese, July 2026, 27 years' service (left Belarus)

(END)

More reports on freedom of thought, conscience and belief in Belarus

For background information, see Forum 18's Belarus religious freedom survey

Forum 18's compilation of Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) freedom of religion or belief commitments

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