{"id":121630,"date":"2025-01-14T11:45:08","date_gmt":"2025-01-14T08:45:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/121630\/"},"modified":"2026-03-10T12:05:06","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T12:05:06","slug":"reprisals-intimidation-campaign-gaining-momentum-ahead-of-presidential-vote","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/121630\/","title":{"rendered":"Reprisals: intimidation campaign gaining momentum ahead of presidential vote"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Briefly:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arrests of regime critics at the border continue <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Authorities plan to restrict access to online services \u2013 reports<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Man sentenced for donations forced to give $600,000 to charities<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Five former law enforcers who quit in 2020 on trial in Minsk<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Petitions.by loses domain name, warns users to stay away<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jailed hacktivist held in punishment cell after surgery<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

January 14, Pozirk. <\/em><\/strong>Authorities stepped up pressure on exiled regime critics and opposition activists in the run-up to the presidential election scheduled for January 21-26 with more instances of politically-motivated persecution reported from January 10 to 13.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Investigative Committee threatened exiles with criminal charges for participation in rallies abroad, while law enforcers arrested at least eight Belarusians at the border upon their return to Belarus, Andrej Stry\u017eak in charge of the BySol solidarity foundation said on social media. One such arrest was of a pregnant woman accused of insulting Interior Minister Ivan Kubrako\u016d in 2020, according to a pro-government source.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Exiled standup comedian Via\u010das\u0142a\u016d Kamisaranka, musician Siarhiej Micha\u0142ok, photographers Ja\u016dhien Kanaplo\u016d and Julija Lejdzik as well as pundit Ta\u0107ciana \u010culickaja are wanted in Belarus as their pictures were spotted on police wanted posters. Police press charges widely seen as politically motivated, the Viasna Human Rights Center reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ilya Davlyatchin, a Russian investigative journalist, is also wanted in Belarus on extremism-related charges, the Mozhem Obyasnit<\/em> Telegram channel said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In another development, the Minsk-based medical university banned its instructors from taking vacation during the election and prohibited students from retaking exams, to force non-Minsk students to leave the city on the election dates, the Beliye Chalaty<\/em> initiative said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Alaksandar \u0141uka\u0161enka’s officials developed a plan to gradually restrict access to several online services, including WhatsApp, YouTube and Instagram by late 2025, the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine said yesterday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Online content<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Andrej Vasile\u016dski, U\u0142adzis\u0142a\u016d Dubiko\u016dski, Ivan Dzienisienka and activist Alaksandar Ryb\u010danka\u016d were tried in the Hrodna and Homiel regions for sharing opposition content, the Pravo Imeyut<\/em> Telegram channel and Viasna’s Homiel branch reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The petitions.by<\/em> platform warned users not to access the website citing security reasons over the seizure of the domain name registration by the authorities, Pozirk<\/em> reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

Alaksandar Darahakupiec was given five and half years in prison for donations to blacklisted opposition initiatives and Belarusian volunteers fighting Russia in Ukraine in Ivanava, Brest region, the Brest region prosecutor\u2019s office said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the pre-trial investigation, the man \u201cvoluntarily transferred\u201d $600,000 to several residential homes for children with disabilities in donations, it added, referring to compensatory payments that opposition supporters are forced to make allegedly to offset donations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Former law enforcers D\u017amitryj Udovin, Andrej Daro\u0161ka, Va\u010das\u0142a\u016d Ilji\u010d, Ihar Ki\u015bliak and Vital Paprocki went on trial in Minsk on charges of calling for sanctions and inciting hatred, Pozirk<\/em> reported. In August 2020 they recorded a video address to their former colleagues calling on them not to use violence against participants in postelection protests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

Danuta Pieradnia, a 22-year-old student given six and a half years in prison for an antiwar post in 2022, was released under the recent pardon program, Dissidentby said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The interior ministry added 22 new names, including seven political prisoners, to the list of \u201cpersons involved in extremist activities,\u201d taking the total of entries to 4,848, its website said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dzianis Sa\u0142manovi\u010d, serving a lengthy prison term in a politically-motivated case, has been held in a punishment cell for two months after surgery, Mediazona<\/em> reported. The man was persecuted and branded a terrorist for allegedly shooting videos for the Cyberpartisans hacktivist group. His parents were forced to flee Belarus, fearing persecution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As of January 14, human rights defenders identified at least 1,249 political prisoners but the real number is considerably higher because many cases go undocumented.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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