Human Rights Situation in Belarus: March 2023

Summary:

• the profound human rights crisis continues to shape the political and economic environment in Belarus; in March, the authorities continued to perpetrate large-scale persecution for political reasons;
• as of the end of March, there were 1,474 political prisoners held in penitentiaries across Belarus; during the month, the human rights community designated 44 people as political prisoners; in total, Viasna is aware of more than 3,000 persons convicted in politically motivated criminal trials;
• the Lieninski District Court of Minsk announced its verdict in the criminal case of the four members of the Human Rights Center "Viasna": chairman of the organization Ales Bialiatski, a member of Viasna’s Board and Vice-President of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) Valiantsin Stefanovic, a lawyer and coordinator the Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections campaign Uladzimir Labkovich, all held in pre-trial detention, and Dzmitry Salauyou (convicted in absentia);
• appeals filed by Marfa Rabkova, coordinator Viasna’s network of volunteers, and Viasna volunteer Andrei Chapiuk, together with the other defendants in their case, were considered by the Supreme Court; the verdict was largely left in place; member of the Human Rights Center "Viasna", head of the Center for Strategic Litigation Leanid Sudalenka, earlier sentenced to three years in prison, continues to serve his sentence in a penal colony;
• human rights defender Nasta Loika remains in pre-trial detention on arbitrary politically motivated charges;
• the authorities continue to routinely arrest individuals for exercising their civil rights; in March, Viasna became aware of 614 cases of arrests, which resulted in 433 cases of politically motivated administrative persecution. The judges ordered at least 166 terms of administrative imprisonment and 36 fines;
• human rights defenders continue to regularly identify and document cases of torture and prohibited treatment in the course of investigations of politically motivated criminal cases, as well as prohibited types of treatment of prisoners serving politically motivated criminal and administrative sentences;
• the authorities continue to persecute individuals for anti-war statements and support for Ukraine as the target of Russian aggression;
• the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights published its report titled “Situation of human rights in Belarus in the run-up to the 2020 presidential election and in its aftermath”. In the period from May 1, 2020 to December 31, 2022, the Belarusian authorities committed several violations of international human rights law, including some that may also amount to crimes against humanity, as defined in customary international law.

Political prisoners and politically motivated persecution

In March, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights published a report titled “Situation of human rights in Belarus in the run-up to the 2020 presidential election and in its aftermath”. The report concludes that the “collected information confirms the scale and patterns of the violations identified in the previous reports of the High Commissioner, as well as their widespread and systematic nature. In the light of the foregoing information set out in the present report, The High Commissioner has reasonable grounds to believe that several violations of international human rights law were committed in Belarus between 1 May 2020 and 31 December 2022. They include arbitrary deprivation of the right to life and to liberty, torture and ill-treatment, including sexual violence, denial of the rights to due process and to a fair trial, arbitrary denial of the right to enter one’s own country, violations of the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association and to equal protection of the law. Some of the violations may also amount to crimes against humanity, as defined in international customary law, when such acts are committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack. […] They appear to have been part of a campaign of violence and repression, intentionally directed at those who were – or were perceived to be – opposing the Government or expressing critical or independent voices.”

Criminal prosecution continues to be actively used by the Belarusian authorities to suppress the expression of alternative opinions. As of March 31, there are 1,474 political prisoners in Belarus. In March, 44 people were designated by human rights defenders as political prisoners, while 9 political prisoners served their sentences and were released. Since 2020, over 650 political prisoners have been released under various circumstances.

Statements released in March to designate new victims as political prisoners mostly concerned persecution for various peaceful forms of expression. In addition, two journalists working with independent media were called political prisoners. The authorities accused them of “promoting extremist activities”. Participants in the 2020 post-election protests are still being routinely targeted in criminal cases facing charges of involvement in “group actions that violate public order”, while human rights defenders continue to insist that the actions of peaceful protesters are unreasonably qualified as criminally punishable acts. Those detained on charges of “financing, promoting or participating in extremist and terrorist activities” were also designated as political prisoners. These concepts are over broadly interpreted by the authorities of Belarus, which allows prosecution on serious criminal charges for non-violent actions related to the exercise of freedom of association, criticism of the authorities and expression of alternative opinions.

March was marked by several new cases of politically motivated persecution involving dozens of persons each.

In particular, multiple arrests and police raids were triggered by the attack on a Russian military aircraft at the Mačuliščy airfield near Minsk. Dozens of people were arrested ahead of Freedom Day, March 25: these arrests affected both local activists and ordinary people accused of “distributing extremist content”.

A distinctive case is the arrest of about 200 people aged 13 to 21 in a criminal case targeting the so-called PMC Ryodan, a subcultural movement which the authorities view as the possible source of unrest.

Viasna reported numerous dismissals of employees of state-owned enterprises in Viciebsk for supporting the nomination of Viktar Babaryka in the 2020 presidential election.

The practice of arrests, interrogations and other forms of pressure continues in connection with donations to the BYSOL fund via Facebook fundraisers, mostly dating back to 2020, even before the foundation was designated as an “extremist formation”.

Viasna human rights defenders Marfa Rabkova, Leanid Sudalenka, Uladzimir Labkovich, Ales Bialiatski, and Valiantsin Stefanovic, together with volunteer Andrei Chapiuk, continue to be held in detention.

On March 3, judge Maryna Zapasnik announced her verdict, finding Uladzimir Labkovich, Ales Bialiatski, Valiantsin Stefanovic, and Dzmitry Salauyou guilty of “smuggling” and “financing group actions that grossly violate public order”, and sentenced them to 7 to 10 years of imprisonment and heavy fines. International human rights organizations condemned the arbitrary sentence. Belarusian human rights organizations supported the imprisoned members of Viasna. The UN Special Rapporteurs called on the international community to tirelessly seek truth and justice for all victims of human rights violations in Belarus.

On March 14, Viasna’s human rights defender Maryia (Marfa) Rabkova was transferred from pre-trial detention center to the women’s penal colony No. 4 in Homieĺ; the political prisoner reportedly suffers from diseases that require diagnosis and treatment.

Human rights defender Nasta Loika remains in detention on politically motivated charges. The authorities have yet been unwilling to investigate allegations of torture and ill-treatment the activist was subjected to while in a temporary detention center and in pre-trial detention.

On March 6, the Minsk City Court convicted Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, Pavel Latushka, Volha Kavalkova, Maryia Maroz, and Siarhei Dyleuski following a trial in absentia. Judge Piotr Arlou sentenced them to 15, 18, 12, 12 and 12 years of imprisonment, respectively. The trial was marred by gross violations of the generally recognized rights, in particular, the right to legal representation.

Valeryia Kastsiuhova and Tatsiana Kouzina were each sentenced by the Minsk City Court to 10 years in prison. They were found guilty of “conspiring to seize power”, “inciting hatred” and “calling for action against national security”. The case was considered by judge Dzina Kuchuk. Kastsiuhova is a political scientist, editor of the analytical website Our Opinion and the author of the Belarusian Yearbook. Kouzina is an expert in the field of public administration, the founder of the School of Young Managers of Public Administration SYMPA and the research center BIPART.

A court in Minsk opened the trial in absentia of Valery Tsapkala, an opposition politician who ran for presidency in the 2020 election. Back in October 2022, the Ministry of Internal Affairs blacklisted Tsapkala as an “extremist formation”, while the politician’s photographs were labelled as “extremist content”.

There are also cases of pressure on prisoners who have fully served their politically motivated sentences. In addition to the widespread practice of imposing various restrictions on those released (a ban on leaving the country, etc.), as of the end of March, human rights defenders are aware of at least 88 cases of repeated convictions. Usually, the new charges are linked to online comments or “breaking prison rules”.

On March 23, the Vaŭkavysk City and District Court convicted political prisoner Siarhei Ramanau under Part 2 of Art. 411 of the Criminal Code (“malicious disobedience to the administration of the penitentiary”) and sentenced to anarchist to 11 months in prison. The verdict was delivered by judge Mikalai Talashka. Thus, the total term for Ramanau is 20 years and 11 months in prison. Since the end of May 2022, Siarhei has been serving a term in the Vaŭkavysk-based colony No. 11, where has faced regular persecution. The prisoner has been repeatedly sent to a punishment cell, and recently he was placed in a cell-type facility (PKT) for 4 months.

The regime has been brutally punishing individuals for their support to Ukraine. Being a party to an unjust war of conquest on the side of the aggressor, the Russian Federation, the Belarusian authorities defiantly severely punish people for providing information and material support to various institutions that counteract aggression. Criminal trials of this kind are held behind closed doors, which grossly violates the rights of the accused. Thus, on March 9, the Homieĺ Regional Court announced the verdict in a trial of “intelligence activities in favor of Ukraine.” A citizen of Ukraine, Pavlo Kupriyenko, was sentenced to seven years under Art. 358-1 (“clandestine intelligence activities”). Taras Machynskyi was accused of “treason against the state” (Part 1 of Article 356 of the Criminal Code) and sentenced to 10 years in prison. Dzmitry Salavianchyk was found guilty of “concealing a serious crime” (Part 1 of Article 405 of the Criminal Code) and fined 14,800 rubles. The sentences were passed by judge Ruslan Tsaruk. The trial started on February 14 and was held behind closed doors.

Violations of freedoms of peaceful assembly and expression

As before, the deprivation and restriction of freedom of participants in peaceful protests and dissidents continue to be the most serious types of violations of the freedoms of peaceful assembly and of expression.

Two and a half years after the 2020 protests, Belarus courts still routinely convict peaceful protesters.

On March 3, the Lieninski District Court of Minsk sentenced political prisoner Mikhail Makarau to one year in prison under Part 1 of Art. 342 of the Criminal Code (participation in actions grossly violating public order). The lawyer was accused of attending a protest in 2020. The case was considered by judge Yuliya Shchotkina. Prior to facing criminal charges, Makarau spent 15 days of administrative imprisonment following a ruling by the court of the Frunzienski district of Minsk (Art. 19.11 of the Code of Administrative Offenses, “dissemination of extremist content”). After that, he was charged under Art. 342 of the Criminal Code and transferred to a pre-trial detention center. On November 3, the Ministry of Justice revoked Makarau’s license.

On January 26, the Court of the Saviecki District of Minsk convicted Natallia Halavashchanka of “active participation in group actions that grossly violate public order” (Part 1 of Article 342 of the Criminal Code). The case of the mother of two minor children was considered by judge Aliaksandr Yakunchykhin. The defendant allegedly blocked traffic by walking on the road and carrying a white-red-white flag. Halavashchanka was sentenced to two and a half years of restricted freedom under home confinement.

On March 13, the Maskoŭski District Court of Minsk convicted a children’s football coach Aleh Shvaiko. He was found guilty under Part 1 of Art. 342 of the Criminal Code and sentenced to two years in prison over his involvement in the 2020 protests. The case was considered by judge Lidziya Tsialitsa.

As before, individuals are routinely convicted on defamation charges, in particular, for insulting Lukashenka and government officials. Defendants in these trials are sentenced to imprisonment or restricted freedom, as well as large fines.

The Pinsk City and District Court convicted a 62-year-old Natallia Pauliuchenka. The woman was found guilty under Art. 368 of the Criminal Code (“insulting Lukashenka”) and sentenced to two years of restricted freedom (home confinement). The case was considered by judge Andrei Bychyla. An expert’s examination conducted in the case noted that the meaning of the defendant’s statement was “an impatient desire for a quick death”, which, according to the expert, is clearly indecent in any society, regardless of the form.

On March 2, the Maladziečna District Court convicted Dzmitry Lazar under Art. 391 (insulting a judge or a lay judge), Art. 369 (insulting a representative of the authorities), and Part 1 of Art. 368 (insulting Lukashenka) of the Criminal Code. Judge Dzianis Bareika sentenced Lazar to two years and six months of imprisonment and a fine of 3,700 rubles. The political prisoner has 6 children, including 3 minors. In January 2022, he posted several comments in a Telegram chat regarding an employee of the prosecutor’s office, employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and a judge of the court of the Lieninski district of Hrodna.

Other forms of exercising freedom of expression are also arbitrarily criminalized.

On March 10, the Kobryn District Court found Dzmitry Lahun guilty under Art. 370 of the Criminal Code (desecration of state symbols) and sentenced him to one year in prison. The case was considered by judge Aliaksandr Babaskin. It is known that on December 10, 2022, Lahun removed a state flag from the building of a local railway station and broke the flagpole. This was recorded by surveillance cameras, and the man was arrested.

On March 16, the Astraviec District Court, convicted Pavel Dubau under Art. 370 of the Criminal Code (desecration of state symbols). Judge Dzmitry Bahdanovich sentenced Dubau to one year and six months in prison. The man was accused of posting a comment in the corporate chat of a major cargo transportation company, explaining that “our flag is the white-red-white one”, and called the official one “sunrise over a swamp.” Pavel wrote the comment when he was in Western Europe, after which he returned to Belarus.

On March 10, the Minsk Regional Court passed a sentence on Raman Yankouski, who was charged with several criminal offenses: Art. 369, “insulting a government official”; Part 3 of Art. 361, “calls for restrictive measures (sanctions), other actions aimed at causing harm to the national security of the Republic of Belarus”; Parts 1 and 2 of Art. 361-4, “assistance to extremist activities”; Part 1 of Art. 368, “insulting the President of the Republic of Belarus”; and Part 3 of Art. 203-1, “illegal actions regarding privacy information and personal data”. The trial was administered by judge Iryna Maiko. According to the prosecution, in mid-June 2021, Yankouski reposted a video containing insults to Aliaksandr Lukashenka, as well as “public calls for the violent overthrow of state power and the implementation of an act of terrorism.” In September 2021, Yankouski posted an insulting comment about a police officer in a Telegram group, and in November 2021, reposted an update from an “extremist” Telegram channel and a video in which “state authorities and administrations were discredited.” In early June 2022, he illegally collected personal data of an employee of the Internal Affairs Directorate of the Minsk Regional Executive Committee, after which he published them in a Telegram chat, which caused “significant harm to the rights and legitimate interests of the victim.” The man was sentenced to 4 years and 6 months in prison and a fine of 11,100 rubles.

Persecution continues for statements against government officials, which are usually a reaction to various forms of repression, while the term “government officials” covers representatives of various social groups: “police officers”, “police officers who support the existing government”, etc., while criticism, public debates on social and political issues or disapproval of violations qualify as “inciting hatred on the basis of belonging to a social group.”

On March 14, the Homieĺ Regional Court ordered to conduct a closed hearing in the criminal trial of Aliaksandr Rumko accused of “slandering Lukashenka” (Part 2 of Article 367), “justification of Nazism” (Part 1 of Article 130-1) and “inciting other social hatred or discord” (Part 1 of Article 130). The case was heard by judge Anatol Sotnikau. The 64-year-old defendant reportedly “incited enmity against police officers” and “heroified collaborators” while commenting on the Odnoklassniki social media. As a result, Rumko was sentenced to three years and six months in prison.

The authorities continue to persecute individuals for various forms of anti-war protest.

The Homieĺ Regional Court in a closed session convicted Artsiom Babkou on charges of “assisting extremist activities” under Part 1 of Article 361-4 of the Criminal Code. The case was considered by judge Mikalai Dolia. According to the prosecution, in February 2022, Babkou posted on social media a video showing the movement of Russian military vehicles in the territory of the Republic of Belarus, indicating their location. Then, he shared the video with several Telegram channels, including those labelled as “extremist formations”. On November 23, the court found the man guilty and sentenced him to two years in prison.

On March 15, the Puchavičy District Court convicted Maksim Aucharenka of “propaganda and public demonstration of Nazi symbols and paraphernalia” (Article 341-1 of the Criminal Code). The case was considered by judge Siarhei Vasileuski. The defendant allegedly posted on Twitter an image with Nazi symbols as an assessment of the actions of the Russian army. The court found Aucharenka guilty and sentenced him to two years of restricted freedom (home confinement).

On March 10, judge Viktoryia Paliashchuk of the Minsk Regional Court sentenced, following a closed trial, political prisoner Natallia Dulina to three years and six months in prison on charges under Part 1 of Art. 342 (organization and preparation of actions that grossly violate public order, or active participation in them), and Part 1 of Art. 361-4 (assistance to extremist activities) of the Criminal Code.

Administrative persecution

In March, Viasna became aware of 614 cases of administrative arrests, and 433 cases of politically motivated administrative persecution. The judges appointed at least 166 terms of administrative imprisonment and 36 fines. The grounds for prosecution were distribution of “extremist content”, “violations of the procedure for holding protests”, “breaching public order” and “resisting arrest”.

The death penalty

On March 25, amendments to the Criminal Code of Belarus came into force, providing for the expansion of the use of the death penalty against government officials and military personnel convicted of treason. In response to yet another move aimed to expand the death penalty, the country’s human rights community issued a statement to call on the authorities to repeal the provisions of the Criminal Code that are inconsistent with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, as they provide for the possibility of using the death penalty for non-violent crimes, as well as for attempted commission of certain types of crimes; to strictly and rigorously enforce their international human rights obligations, guaranteeing respect for the right to life; to strive for the complete elimination of the death penalty, and not to expand the scope of its application, as provided for by international human rights standards.

Torture and prohibited treatment

Cruel, inhuman and degrading conditions of detention for persons imprisoned under administrative procedures and those arrested on politically motivated criminal charges are still widely used in the detention facilities of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Former political prisoners continue share with Viasna details of cases of torture, cruel, degrading, and inhuman treatment. They are beaten during arrest, when transported in police vehicles, in prison No. 8 in the city of Žodzina, placed in overcrowded and unsanitary cells. In particular, a former political prisoner complained about being held together with 28 other people in a four-bed cell in a temporary detention center and later in another overcrowded cell in a pre-trial prison. Also, prisoners are often denied access to proper medical care in pre-trial detention facilities and prisons (penal colonies).

Three women political prisoners, Alena Maushuk, Palina Sharenda-Panasiuk, and Viktoryia Kulsha, serve their terms together with repeated offenders in penal colony No. 24 in Zarečča, Homieĺ region. During their entire time in prison, the women have faced unbearable conditions: they are regularly placed in a punishment cell, while the conditions of detention are described as inhuman by former prisoners. The political prisoners are deprived of family visits and food parcels, and letters from their relatives are destroyed. Viktoryia Kulsha has been on hunger strike several times to protest arbitrary pressure from the prison authorities.

Viasna’s human rights defenders learned about cases of repression and inhumane treatment of female prisoners held in penal colony No. 4 in Homieĺ.

A former prisoner told Viasna about the torture and harassment of convicts for political reasons in penal colony No. 17, together with the circumstances of the death of Vitold Ashurak, and the pressure on Pavel Seviarynets.

Freedom of association

Lawtrend presented an overview of the situation with freedom of association and the situation of civil society organizations in 2022. The document covers the new legislative rules for organizations, changes in the legislation governing the work of CSOs, as well as the practice of their application. Interference in the activities of CSOs and the use of legislation on countering extremism and combating terrorism, pressure and liquidation of trade unions and other non-profit organizations were described in detail.

Persecution of journalists and media workers

As of the end of March, 35 journalists and media workers were being held in Belarusian penitentiaries.

On March 7, the State Security Committee (KGB) outlawed the Belarusian Association of Journalists as an “extremist formation”. The KGB designated a group of “citizens from among the representatives of the non-governmental public organization Belarusian Association of Journalists”, including Andrei Bastunets, Aleh Aheyeu, Barys Haretski, Volha Khvoin, Alina Suravets, Aliaksandr Starykevich, Zoya Lukashuk, and Siarhei Komlach.

On March 15, security forced raided the editorial office of the newspaper Infa-Kurjer in Sluck. Three editorial staff were arrested. Two of them, Siarhei Stankevich and Aleh Rubchenia, were later sentenced to 15 days of administrative imprisonment for “resisting arrest”.

On the same day, the house of the editor-in-chief of the Rehiyanalnaya Hazeta, Aliaksandr Mantsevich, was searched in Viliejka. Rehiyanalnaya Hazeta is a private newspaper covering local news. In 2022, the authorities labelled the outlet’s website as “extremist content”. Since then, the newspaper has been publishing news on social media.

On March 17, in Minsk, the verdict was announced to the editor-in-chief of TUT.BY Maryna Zolatava and the director of TUT.BY MEDIA LLC Liudmila Chekina. Both were sentenced to 12 years in prison on charges of “distributing content with public calls for the seizure of state power, forcible change of the constitutional order, calls addressed to foreign states, foreign and international organizations, to actions to the detriment of the national security of the Republic of Belarus, committed using the media and the Internet” and “deliberate actions aimed at inciting social hostility and discord on the basis of a different social affiliation, committed by a group of persons.” Chekina was also found guilty of “tax evasion”.

On March 23, the Minsk City Court convicted journalist Henadz Mazheika under Part 1 of Art. 368 (insulting Lukashenka) and Part 1 of Art. 130 (inciting other social hatred) of the Criminal Code. Judge Tatsiana Falkouskaya the political prisoner to three years in prison. Mazheika authored a story for the Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper covering the life and personality of Andrei Zeltser, an IT worker who died in a shootout with KGB officers. According to the prosecution, the reporter, “showing an immoral interest in extremist activity, being its supporter, acting in accordance with the motives of political and ideological hostility, committed a number of crimes in the period from June 23, 2020 to October 2021.” The prosecution also quoted a statement the political prisoner allegedly said in public to describe Lukashenka: “Running around with a machine gun? [...] How can a normal person run around with a machine gun? [...] This is a crazy bastard.”

Journalists Pavel Padabed and Viachaslau Lazarau, who collaborated with several independent media, were arrested on charges under Part 1 of Article 364-1 of the Criminal Code (assistance to extremist activities), which prompted the country’s human rights community to call them political prisoners.

Violations of freedoms of assembly, expression and association under the guise of combating extremism

As of the end of March, the list of people involved in “extremist activities” featured 2,596 people; during the month, the list increased by almost 100 names.

The list of “extremist formations”, which is updated by the decisions of the KGB and the Ministry of Internal Affairs, contains 121 entries. In March, 5 new “extremist formations” were added to the list, including Brestskaya Gazeta and the Belarusian Association of Journalists.

In March, the National list of extremist products and content increased by almost 100 items. Among them are the website “Brest Viasna” (brestspring.org) and the Telegram channel “Vitebsk Viasna”.

Persecution of lawyers

On March 20, at least six lawyers were arrested for unknown reasons. Among them are Artsiom Siamyianau, who defended Valiantsin Stefanovic, Ihar Losik, and Pavel Belavus (later sentenced to a term of administrative imprisonment), and Yury Kozikau (defended Yauheny Yushkevich and Maksim Znak). Lawyers Uladzimir Stashkevich (worked on the Autukhovich case and defended Mikalai Statkevich) and Ivan Chyzhyk (defended Viktar Babaryka) were also arrested.

On March 24, the Lieninski District Court of Minsk considered the administrative case of lawyer Inesa Alenskaya. She was accused of “distributing extremist content” under Part 1 of Art. 19.11 of the Code of Administrative Offenses. The case was considered by judge Yuliya Shut. The day before, government-owned TV channels posted a video alleging that the counsel “used to post white-red-white flags, songs and even her toilet in chats” and “speaking unfavorably of officials and civil servants.”

Following an examination, the qualification commission of the Ministry of Justice on March 22 ruled that lawyers Inesa Alenskaya and Dzianis Sharstniou could not practice law. The same decision was issued with respect to lawyer Kavalevich.

Alenskaya represented Siarhei Tsikhanouski, Raman Pratasevich, Nasta Loika, and Ryhor Kastusiou.