{"id":188505,"date":"2026-05-21T18:38:49","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T15:38:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/188505\/"},"modified":"2026-05-21T18:38:52","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T15:38:52","slug":"democratic-countries-call-for-release-of-belarusian-dissidents-on-solidarity-day","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/188505\/","title":{"rendered":"Democratic countries call for release of Belarusian dissidents on solidarity day"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n\n Event dedicated to late activist Vitold A\u0161urak\n <\/div>\n \n
\n (Pozirk)<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

May 21, Pozirk.<\/em> <\/strong>Representatives of democratic countries and institutions have called for the release and rehabilitation of all jailed Belarusian regime critics on the fifth anniversary of opposition activist Vitold A\u0161urak\u2019s death behind bars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rights groups and pro-democracy leaders declared the day of his death, May 21, International Day of Solidarity with Belarusian Political Prisoners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since 2021, nine designated political prisoners have lost their lives behind bars, Lithuania\u2019s special envoy Asta Andrijauskiene reminded in an X post, calling for the release of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finland\u2019s Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen stressed that arbitrary arrests and persecution of human rights activists and journalists in Belarus continue. The diplomat pledged her support to the Belarusian pro-democracy forces and opposition leader \u015aviat\u0142ana Cichano\u016dskaja\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kajsa Ollongren, the European Union\u2019s special representative for human rights, noted that three jailed Belarusian dissidents are over 70 years old: Barys Vitko, Vasil Dzianisavi\u010d and U\u0142adzimir Michalenka, stressing the need for their immediate and unconditional release.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Estonia\u2019s foreign ministry pledged \u201csolidarity with all those unjustly detained\u201d and stressed that hundreds \u201cremain unjustly imprisoned for speaking freely, defending human rights and believing in a democratic future.\u201d The diplomats called for accountability, targeted sanctions and sustained international pressure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOn the International Day of Solidarity with Political Prisoners in Belarus, we express our firm support for all those unjustly imprisoned in Belarus,\u201d said the Latvian foreign ministry. \u201cWe call on the Belarusian regime to end its repression against its own people and to release all political prisoners.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rights defenders from Index on Censorship renewed their call for the release of journalist and former colleague Andrej Alaksandra\u016d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steen Noerlov, head of the EU Delegation to Belarus, Canada\u2019s embassy in Poland and the Irish embassy in Lithuania also joined the call for the release of all designated political prisoners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As of May 21, human rights defenders identified at least 841 political prisoners but the real number is considerably higher because many cases go undocumented.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Police terrorizing alleged protestors after missing five-year deadline for prosecution<\/h3>\n
May 20, Pozirk. Police are intimidating people who allegedly took part in post-election protests in 2020 but may no longer be prosecuted as the statute of limitations for their \u201ccrime\u201d has expired. In particular, according to Nasha Niva, officers of …<\/div>\n \n