Courts impose 44 jail terms on dissidents under Administrative Offenses Code in Jan

February 2, BPN. Activists documented 350 arrests and 141 cases of politically motivated persecution for minor offenses in January 2023, the Viasna Human Rights Center reported. Courts imposed at least 44 jail terms and at least 20 fines. One sentence involved 60 hours of community service.

“The number of convictions under defamation articles for insults against [Alaksandr] Łukašenka and state officials is still large,” the center said. On top of that, authorities continued to harass those expressing “an anti-war stance,” it added.

The official list of people “involved in extremist activities” had 2,370 names in late January. That’s over 100 more than the previous month. The list of “extremist groups” had 115 entries, including Tor Band, the first ever band to be given that label, activists said.

Thirty people were declared political prisoners. Their number totaled 1,436.

In January 2022, courts had imposed 44 jail terms and eight fines on dissidents, according to Viasna.