Belarusian human rights defender Olga Karach received the Peace Ambassador 2026 award.
On 22 August 2026, Belarusian human rights defender Olga Karach, head of the human rights organisation Our House, received the international Peace Ambassador 2026 award at the Peace World Award ceremony in Stockholm, Sweden.
The award recognises Karach’s longstanding human rights and anti-war work, including her efforts to protect and support refugees, forcibly displaced people and other vulnerable groups, as well as her consistent commitment to peace, nonviolence and the peaceful resolution of conflicts in Belarus and across Eastern Europe.
For Olga Karach, the award is not only a personal recognition, but also recognition of the work carried out by the entire Our House team under exceptionally challenging circumstances in Lithuania and Belarus.
The organisation assists people forced to flee their countries because of war and political repression, defends the rights of refugees, supports women and children, provides assistance to conscientious objectors, challenges militarisation and promotes nonviolent alternatives to war and violence.
“This recognition is not only personal. I see it above all as recognition of the work that the Our House team continues to carry out under exceptionally challenging circumstances in Lithuania and Belarus,” Olga Karach said.
The Peace Ambassador 2026 award also reflects one of the central principles behind the work of Olga Karach and Our House: sustainable security cannot be achieved through an ever-increasing reliance on weapons, violence, fear and militarisation.
“Security cannot be built on weapons, violence, fear and militarisation alone. Sustainable peace requires respect for human dignity and human rights, solidarity and dialogue, and the ability of societies to resolve conflicts without resorting to violence,” Karach stressed.
This principle has particular significance for the work of Our House in a region deeply affected by war, authoritarian repression, forced displacement and increasing militarisation. The organisation has consistently sought to preserve space for civilian and nonviolent approaches to security and conflict resolution, while providing practical support to people directly affected by repression and war.
Olga Karach also expressed particular gratitude to the Swedish organisation Artists for Peace, which nominated her for the award.
“I am particularly grateful to Artists for Peace for nominating me for this award. Their trust, solidarity and recognition of our work mean a great deal to me and to our whole team,” she said.
Karach dedicated the recognition to the wider community of people and organisations that have supported this work over the years.
“I also want to share this recognition with all those who have stood beside us over the years — colleagues, partners, friends and supporters who continue to believe that even in times of war, repression and growing militarisation, there must remain space for human rights, compassion, nonviolence and peace.”
For Our House, the Peace Ambassador 2026 award is also an important sign that the work of Belarusian human rights defenders in exile remains visible internationally. Their experience of supporting refugees, protecting people affected by political repression, defending conscientious objectors and challenging militarisation forms part of a much broader European and international effort to protect human dignity and build sustainable peace.
The award is therefore viewed not as the culmination of this work, but as recognition of the need to continue it — particularly at a time when war, repression, forced migration and growing militarisation are affecting millions of people across the region.
