Darja Łosik’s case sent to court

December 6, BPN. The Brest Region’s Prosecutor’s Office has sent to court a criminal case against Darja Łosik, the wife of imprisoned blogger and RFE/RL freelancer Ihar Łosik, the Prosecutor General’s Office reported.

Authorities accuse her of promoting extremism by giving an interview to the banned Poland-based Belsat TV channel. Prosecutors say that she introduced herself as the wife of a political prisoner and criticized authorities, urging family members of other convicts to follow her example.

Police arrested Darja on October 18. Her husband is currently serving a 15-year prison sentence for allegedly inciting hatred and participating in protests. Human rights defenders declared both political prisoners.

Since her husband’s arrest back in June 2020, Darja has taken an active public stance, insisting that the case against Ihar Łosik was completely fabricated. She reported violations of his rights in prison in social media and alerted the public that prison authorities labelled him as prone to suicide and extremism.

In June, Radio Svaboda, the RFE/RL Belarus Service, published Darja’s video appeal to Alaksandr Łukašenka, in which she offered herself in exchange for her husband.

Belarusian opposition leader Sviatłana Cichanoŭskaja called her a person of “incredible endurance and strength of will.” Vedant Patel, deputy spokesperson for the U.S. Department of State, described Darja’s arrest as “yet another attack by the – [Alaksandr] Łukašenka’s brutal regime on human rights and fundamental freedoms.”