Interview with former political prisoner Natallia Hersche

"I only dreamt once about prison. I remember the feeling of danger I associated with my imprisonment when I woke up," ex-political prisoner Natallia Hersche tells Euroradio. More than six months after the Belarusian's release and our interview, we decided to call her again to find out how she was living in Switzerland.

Before her departure, Natallia had spent 17 months behind bars. The call caught her in a spa center, where she was recuperating.

Natallia Hersche: This place provides good care and rest. I feel I am recovering physically and mentally. I think I've almost recovered, although many things will stay in my heart and memory forever. But life goes on: I was an optimist and will remain one. Everything will be fine.

Euroradio: "Courage 2022" is the name of the prize you received recently from the Swiss magazine Beobachter for staying true to your values and not asking Lukashenka for pardon despite living in a cold little cell and unbearable conditions. How did the awarding ceremony go?

Natallia Hersche: I was invited to an event at the end of October. There were a lot of guests and journalists. Short stories were shown about each of the nominees. And the day before, our stories were written in the magazine, and readers could vote for them.

I can't say that I won the award. Instead, I was honored to receive it. It's a great honor for me, just like it is for all Belarusians. It turns out that Belarus has not been forgotten, and European countries see the difficult path that our people is taking toward democracy. Everything that happened in 2020 was not in vain. It was a challenging but right stage of development toward a democratic society. I am very glad that many of my compatriots think the same way. Our society, our Belarus, deserves a better future.

Euroradio: Who else did Beobachter magazine award with a prize?

Natallia Hersche: Annie Lanz received a lifetime award for persistence and patience. Her field is foreigners who did not get a residence permit in Switzerland and was forced to leave it by a court decision. She told how one man from Afghanistan lost his entire family. He had mental problems and several suicide attempts. He was forced to leave, I think, for Italy. Annie found out his story and came to him in her car. Brought him back. Then she even had to stand trial for her actions and got a monetary fine.

The thing is, she is about 80 years old. For more than 40 years, her meaning in life has been helping foreigners. Sometimes it works; sometimes, it doesn't. She lives in a 3-bedroom apartment in Basel and often has people staying with her who have registration problems. She helps them as much as she can. She defends them in front of the court.

Her energy and perseverance are very inspiring to me. We have exchanged contacts, and I would be happy to keep in touch with her.

Euroradio: We know that after the start of the full-scale war, there was a problem with organizing the concert of the Belarusian musicians in Switzerland.

Natallia Hersche: Yes, there was. But I think that this is a local situation. I did not feel a trend of dislike for Belarusians. There were some misunderstandings, which were resolved almost immediately. I recently met with the organizers to explain the situation and remind them what's happening here. It's hard for someone who does not know the subtleties of politics in Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia to figure out what's what. Yes, it took us some time, but there is no such thing now.

Euroradio: Was it challenging to reach the organizers?

Natallia Hersche: Not really. We managed to solve everything in one meeting. I think local politicians were securing themselves and were afraid to show themselves in an ugly way. Like they are not accomplices and adherents of that aggression, which is going now from Russia toward Ukraine. And against the will of the people of Belarus, our country is also dragged into this conflict. All due to Lukashenka, of course.

Euroradio: How do people in Switzerland react to your story?

Natallia Hersche: Most people express their admiration and support, but there are, of course, other people who leave angry anonymous comments. For example, they write, "of course, it was hard in the Belarusian prison, but you knew you were warned not to take part in the protests."

I try not to respond to such comments because I understand that if someone hides their face, they are ashamed of something.

There was also a comment about my release costing the taxpayers something. I replied that to make accusations, we should first get some facts straight, and then we would continue our conversation. The person never reappeared.

Euroradio: How has your life changed since you came to Switzerland?

Natalia Hersche: I don't know what has changed. Seventeen months in prison certainly left its mark on my life. I don't know how to deal with what happened. It's gone now. My goal now is to keep the subject of Belarus in the Swiss European society so that Belarus is not forgotten and our political prisoners are remembered.

It's complicated. We all know there is a war, and Belarus depends on its outcome. We hope that everything will fall into place and everything will be different.

Euroradio: How do you sleep?

Natallia Hersche: I don't dream that often because I have some trouble sleeping. It can be different: I can't fall asleep due to various thoughts in my head, or I fall asleep and always wake up not entirely calm. I do not have nightmares.

It may be because I set myself up in the following way: the regime is a struggle, and the goal is victory. It was hard to break me morally, so to speak. The Bible and spiritual literature helped me to reach the state of mind in which I came out. Maybe, if not for that, everything would have been different, and the result would have been more pitiable. I still have the strength to fight on.

Right now, I'm transitioning to a more peaceful life and thinking about what I want to do in the future. I am concerned about my professional side of life. I would like to find myself. Those are the goals and objectives.

Euroradio: Did you work somewhere after you were released from prison?

Natalia Hersche: Before I was imprisoned, I had worked in a company in Switzerland for seven years. I wasn't fired; I kept my job. At the moment, I am on sick leave, but they are waiting for me there. We'll see how and what will happen. It's not that easy for me because I want something new. I hope everything works out well. It's time to make some serious decisions.

Euroradio: do you want to go to Belarus? Do you want to see your relatives or friends?

Natallia Hersche: Of course, I want to go to Minsk, but I'm free. It's impossible to go to the homeland for now, but I'll definitely go back in the future. We'll get together with everyone we crossed paths with in prison, we'll gather for a demonstration and celebrate our victory. That's what we said to ourselves while still in the cell.

Euroradio: The reward is 15,000 francs. What are you going to do with it?

Natallia Hersche: I don't know exactly yet. The only thing I can think of is to try to buy my two cats back from the woman who thinks she owns them. Alas, she won't put her in my place and understand why I couldn't take care of them. I will try to ask her to sell them back to me.

My daughter, of course, is very pessimistic about this. It is unlikely that the new owner will compromise, but I believe that even if there is a one in a hundred chance, you have to use it. That's why, if I succeed, a part of the money will buy my cats back.
 

Euroradio: was it your ex-husband who gave the cats away while you were not there?

Natallia Hersche: He is my boyfriend, he is not my husband. He gave them away because he was having a hard time with my situation and dealing with cats was hard. He gave one cat to a friend. Thanks to the Belarusians' help, I could buy her back. For which I thank them very much. The other two were given to another friend. He, when he couldn't take care of them, found some woman and sold my cats to her. Because of that incident, it's hard for me to get them back now. The woman legally processed the purchase, even though she knew my story. She thinks she's right, and that's it. It's a very sad story for my daughter and me - she has been growing up with them since she was ten.

Euroradio: Miracles do happen!

Natallia Hersche: Let's hope for one.

Natallia Hersche is a Swiss citizen of Belarusian origin. In December 2020, she was sentenced in Minsk to 2.5 years in a strict regime colony for resisting a policeman during a street action. At one of the women's marches, she tried to tear a balaclava from riot policeman Siarhey Konchyk. In court, Hershe did not admit her guilt, but in prison she behaved courageously and went on hunger strikes to defend her rights.

It took Switzerland about 17 months to secure the release of her citizen. This became possible after the arrival of the new Swiss ambassador to Belarus and the presentation of copies of her credentials to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Uladzimir Makei.

Natallia Hersche never wrote a pardon petition to Aliaksandr Lukashenka.