The "International Democracy Prize Bonn" (IDP) association - for the first time together with the state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the federal city of Bonn - awarded the "International Prize for Democracy and the Rule of Law Bonn" to the non-partisan Belarusian civil rights activist, presidential candidate and leader of the Belarusian opposition Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya on December 7, 2025 in front of more than 500 guests in the former plenary hall of the German Bundestag, now the World Conference Center Bonn. The award ceremony was streamed by Deutsche Welle on its YouTube channel Belarus.

With this award, the IDP honored Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya's outstanding commitment to a free and democratic Belarus. Her work is representative of the many people who are doing everything in their power to put an end to the arbitrary political rule by the Belarusian state apparatus. At the same time, their resistance is directed at a regime that is willingly participating in the Russian Federation's aggression against the European security and peace order. In her welcoming address, IDP Chairwoman Prof. Dorothee Dzwonnek spoke about the association's aim to reward and promote courageous commitment to strengthening and defending the principle of democracy and its prerequisites as well as the rule of law - especially now, at a time when democracy is under threat worldwide. In his welcoming address, Lord Mayor Guido Deus pointed out the special significance of Bonn as the cradle of German democracy and the long-standing city partnership between Bonn and Minsk. In his laudatory speech, the Minister for Federal and European Affairs, International Affairs and Media of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia and Head of the State Chancellery, Nathanael Liminski, emphasized the role of the prizewinner as a representative of the many people who stood up for freedom and had to give way to the brutal harshness of the Lukashenka regime. Dzwonnek and Liminski praised the courage and determination of the prizewinner, who gives people hope. In her acceptance speech, which was partly held in German, Tsikhanouskaya emphasized the connection between a free Belarus and the war in Ukraine and said: "A regime that does not respect its own people does not respect its neighbors either." Following the award ceremony, Tsikhanouskaya and Liminski answered knowledgeable questions from Patrick Leusch (Deutsche Welle). Liminski spoke about the role of North Rhine-Westphalia in supporting Belarus; the prizewinner addressed her citizens directly and expressed the hope that one day she would be able to live in a free Belarus in a free Europe and leave her current exile in Lithuania. The award ceremony was accompanied by music from the JAZZCHOR of the University of Bonn.

Movie above: Summary (film 5 min); film below: Recording of the award ceremony (90 min)