{"id":206698,"date":"2026-10-08T17:28:57","date_gmt":"2026-10-08T14:28:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/206698\/"},"modified":"2026-10-08T17:29:00","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T14:29:00","slug":"jailed-trade-unionist-goes-blind-in-prison-reports","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/206698\/","title":{"rendered":"Jailed trade unionist goes blind in prison \u2013 reports"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n\n Vac\u0142a\u016d Are\u0161ka\n <\/div>\n \n
\n (Novy \u010cas)<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

October 8, Pozirk.<\/em><\/strong> Vac\u0142a\u016d Are\u0161ka, 71, a designated political prisoner and labor union activist, has lost his sight completely in prison, Radyjo Svaboda<\/em> reported, citing his family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are\u0161ka could previously distinguish between light and shadow, but now cannot see at all. Despite his blindness, he wrote a few words by hand in a greeting to his grandchildren a few days ago, although a relative said his handwriting is now almost impossible to decipher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prison authorities at Penal Colony No 22 in the Brest region\u2019s Ivacevi\u010dy district, where Are\u0161ka is held, reportedly offered to take him to a hospital under guard, but he refused. A relative said he may fear that he would not survive the transfer. In addition to vision problems, the activist suffers from hypertension, back pain and leg problems, and his condition continues to deteriorate gradually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Police arrested Are\u0161ka in April 2022 as part of the crackdown on the independent labor unions in Belarus. In January 2023, he was sentenced to eight years in prison on charges widely seen as politically motivated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rights defenders mentioned Are\u0161ka\u2019s name among at least 185 jailed Belarusian dissidents whose health raised serious concerns, the Viasna Human Rights Center reported last month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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