{"id":111620,"date":"2024-10-29T11:55:06","date_gmt":"2024-10-29T08:55:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/111620\/"},"modified":"2026-03-10T12:05:06","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T12:05:06","slug":"reprisals-target-regime-critics-journalists-pundits","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/111620\/","title":{"rendered":"Reprisals target regime critics, journalists, pundits"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

October 29, <\/strong>Pozirk<\/strong>.<\/em> Police started summoning former political prisoners across Belarus to warn them against \u201cviolent change of the constitutional order\u201d and seizure of power in the run-up to January\u2019s presidential election, the Viasna Human Rights Center said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other cases of politically-motivated persecution documented in Belarus from October 26 to 28 included the trial of Siarhiej \u010cabo\u0107ka, owner of s13.ru<\/em> news website, for sharing opposition content, hrodna.life<\/em> reported. The website has not been updated for several days and may have been designated extremist content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In another development, authorities blocked access to tuzinfm.by<\/em>, Belarusian digital music and culture service, the project\u2019s exiled founder Siarhiej Budkin said on Facebook.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arrests and trials<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pro-government sources reported the arrests of movie actor U\u0142adzis\u0142a\u016d Lipo\u016dski for posting online comments and following opposition content, and a man in Ma\u0142adzie\u010dna, Minsk region, for allegedly trying to tear down the state flag from a school building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About two weeks ago, police also arrested artists Ludmi\u0142a \u0160\u010damialova and Ihar Ryma\u0161e\u016dski, Na\u0161a Niva <\/em>reported. The reasons remain unknown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Minsk man was fined 555 rubels (some $168) for not standing up as the national anthem was played before a soccer game in 2023, vgr.by <\/em>said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Criminal proceedings<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ivan Pastu\u0161ok, Anatol Kasi\u0142a, Alaksandar Ciulkin and Andrej Bobika\u016d went on trial in Hrodna on charges of violent disorder in connection with 2020 postelection protests, the Pravo Imeyut<\/em> Telegram channel reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

D\u017amitryj Novak is on trial in Pinsk, Brest region, on similar charges, Viasna’s Brest branch said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A judge in \u0141uniniec, Brest region, opened proceedings in the trial of Artur Mo\u0142\u010dan and Artur Kanapacki accused of abusing the state symbols, the same Viasna\u2019s branch said. Three years ago, both reportedly took down a state flag from a store. Authorities identified one of the accused as he had to undergo fingerprinting during this year’s draft campaign.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Extremist” list update<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Belarusian authorities added 50 people to the list of persons \u201cinvolved in extremist activity,\u201d including a group of political experts associated with Belarusian opposition leader \u015aviat\u0142ana Cichano\u016dskaja, according to the interior ministry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other cases<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Latvia\u2019s foreign ministry confirmed information about 26 Latvians arrested in Belarus but did not specify the dates of the arrests, LETA<\/em> reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As of October 29, human rights defenders identified at least 1,294 political prisoners but the real number is considerably higher because many cases go undocumented.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Belarusian authorities filed 7,400 politically-motivated criminal cases in the four years since the August 2020 presidential election, according to Viasna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n
\n \"\"