Human rights groups declare 15 political prisoners, including former prosecutor

December 24, Pozirk. Belarusian human rights organizations have declared 15 more people political prisoners.

In a statement released by the Viasna Human Rights Center yesterday, the organizations granted this status to five men prosecuted under Article 293 of the Criminal Code (mass riots):

• Siarhiej Botvič (five years’ imprisonment)
• Pavieł Niavyhłas (14 months)
• Kirył Maciuta (sentence unknown)
• Arciom Jankoŭski (charged)
• Maksim Varniel (charged)

and to 10 others prosecuted under Article 342 (active participation in acts that seriously undermine public order):

• Juryj Dabrachotaŭ (two years and also accused of possessing marijuana under Article 328 Part 1)
• Alaksandar Łykšyn (his detention was reported in early December. Reports named him as a founder of Pismo.bel, a service for sending letters to prisoners, and a protester. Sentence unknown)
• Uładzimir Łykšyn (Alaksandr Łykšyn’s brother. Sentence unknown)
• Hanna Čarkas (sentence unknown)
• Tamara Astrejka (charged),
• Łarysa Katovič (sentence unknown)
• Ksienija Ryžyk (sentence unknown)
• Kaciaryna Cevan (sentence unknown)
• Eldar Safaraŭ (detained last week together with his wife. In 2010, he prosecuted high-profile activist Mikałaj Aŭtuchovič. He resigned in the fall of 2020 amid anti-government protests)
• Julija Stankievič (a lawyer married to Safaraŭ)

The groups demanded that the authorities immediately release all political prisoners and stop reprisals.

Besides Viasna, the statement was signed by the Belarusian Helsinki Committee, the Barys Zvozskaŭ Human Rights House, the Office for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the Belarusian Association of Journalists, Pravavaja Inicyjatyva, and Human Constanta.

As of this afternoon, human rights activists have identified at least 1,497 political prisoners but the real number is considerably higher because many cases go undocumented. Opposition sources estimate the number of political prisoners at around 5,000.