"Sad holidays": at least 30 families spent New Year's Eve and Christmas behind bars
As of December 24, there are more than 1,300 political prisoners in Belarus. Sometimes family members are detained on the same case, sometimes for solidarity with each other. There are at least 30 families among political prisoners, which has been the maximum number of families behind bars over the past few years.
- Illustration: Viasna volunteer service
The family that was convicted of "treason against the state"
Human rights defenders found out about the detention of Vasil, Larysa, and Pavel Prokharau in December 2023. This is a family: a husband, wife, and their son. They are charged under the following articles: "treason to the state", "incitement of hatred or hostility", "assistance to extremist activities", and "failure to report a crime". In the spring of 2024, Pavel and Larysa Ivanauna were sentenced to eight years in a penal colony, and Vasil to 11 years of imprisonment.
Mother and daughter behind bars
- Yuliya Laptanovich with her husband and children
Tatsiana Vasilyeva and Yuliya Laptanovich are mother and daughter. Yuliya, who has many children, has been held behind bars for more than three years. Yuliya's husband Ihar, who was also convicted in a political case, served his full sentence last year and was released. Yuliya's mother, Tatsiana, was detained on August 27, 2024, and charged under Part 1 of Article 361-4 (assistance to extremist activities) of the Criminal Code for an interview with Belsat TV channel in 2021.
A family of artists who are being tried for marches
Liudmila Shchemialeva and Ihar Rymasheuski are a family of artists. They are participants in national and international exhibitions. Their paintings are in the National Art Museum of the Republic of Belarus, the Art Fund of the Republic of Belarus, the Webkunsthaus Gallery in Germany, the Schaer und Wildbolc Gallery in Switzerland, as well as in private collections in England, Australia, Austria, Denmark, Germany, Lithuania, Holland, France, Spain, Israel, Russia, Switzerland, Poland, Turkey, Italy, Japan, Ukraine, USA, China, Czech Republic, Syria, and Lebanon. They were charged under Article 342 of the Criminal Code (participation in actions grossly violating public order).
A couple tried for "treason against the state"
The spouses from Baranavičy, Uladzislau and Tatsiana Kashcheyeu, are charged under Parts 1 and 2 of Article 356 of the Criminal Code (treason to the state). The circumstances of the case are unknown to human rights defenders. It is known that the man is 49 years old and the woman is 44. They have two children, the youngest son is still a minor.
Mother and daughter convicted for "preparing a terrorist act"
Tatsiana Rusak was detained along with her daughter Hanna Savachkina. She was convicted under one article of the Criminal Code — "treason against the state" (Part 1 of Article 356). Tatsiana, 48, and Hanna, 25, were sentenced to seven years in a penal colony each.
Brothers convicted for protesting
- Brothers with Tsimur's daughter
Tsimur Pipiya, 35, and Tamaz Pipiya, 30, are football fans of the MTZ-RIPA club. They were detained on suspicion of organizing mass riots on September 23, after Lukashenka's secret inauguration. Tamaz was sentenced to six and a half years in a penal colony, and Tsimur to six years, three months, and two days of imprisonment.
Their mother was diagnosed with a malignant tumor. Severe stress did its job, and she died in August 2024. Now their younger sister, 26-year-old Luiza, takes care of her brothers.
A couple sentenced to a penal colony
In two cases, railway worker Henadz Vasiliuk was sentenced to two years in a penal colony. He is a railway engineer from Brest. First, in September 2023, he was detained and convicted under an administrative article for the distribution of extremist materials, after which he was fired. On December 7, 2023, the man was placed in custody in a criminal case for slandering Lukashenka, after which, together with his wife Hanna Vasiliuk, he was tried for participating in peaceful assemblies. His wife was sentenced to a year in a penal colony.
Spouses convicted for protesting
- Photo from the Maushuk family wedding
Pinsk residents and political prisoners Siarhei and Alena Maushuk are involved in a criminal case on mass riots on the night of August 9–10 (Part 2 of Alena 293 of the Criminal Code). Alena worked as a nurse and assistant cook at a Pinsk hospital. Until August, they raised three children together, until Alena was placed in custody. 10-year-old Anhelina was taken to a social shelter because Siarhei is her stepfather. Later, the daughter was taken away from the orphanage by her godmother.
The man was sentenced to six and a half years in a penal colony. In November the case of his transfer to the prison security level was heard: the results are unknown. Alena was sentenced to six years in a penal colony. It is known that Alena was deprived of her parental rights.
A father who fought for his son
Mikhail Lapunou is the father of political prisoner Mikita Zalatarou, who was sentenced to four and a half years in a penal colony. Mikita suffers from epilepsy. He was a minor at the time of his arrest. Mikhail was detained on August 8, 2023, and sentenced to 15 days of detention under Article 19.11 of the Administrative Code of the Republic of Belarus (distribution of extremist materials). After his first arrest, he was not released and was sentenced under the same article for another 15 days, and then for another 15. As a result, he was arrested seven times in a row and held in a temporary detention facility for three months. On October 24, 2023, the closed Telegram chat Homieĺ for Mikita Zalataroy was recognized as an "extremist formation" by the decision of the KGB, and its only designated participant was Mikhail Lapunou, the father of the political prisoner. As a result, he was sentenced to imprisonment. The exact term is unknown.
A family of journalists
Katsiaryna Andreyeva and Ihar Ilyash, a family of journalists, spent holidays behind bars. Katsiaryna is a journalist for the Belsat TV channel, who was detained right after a live broadcast from the scene of the violent dispersal of demonstrators by security forces on Change Square in Minsk on November 15, 2020. She was sentenced first to two, and then to eight years and three months in a penal colony. Her husband Ihar Ilyash did not leave Belarus, as he wanted to be able to support Katsiaryna, but in October 2024 he was also detained for an interview with independent media. They are both behind bars now.
Mother and daughter who were convicted of transmitting information
Mother and daughter Ina and Valeryia Hlinskiya worked at MTBank. They were convicted of transferring information to the Black Book of Belarus. Ina worked in a managerial position. On December 28, 2021, the women were detained. The mother and daughter were convicted of transferring the information of the security forces to the Black Book of Belarus in 2020 under three articles of the Criminal Code. Ina was sentenced to seven years of imprisonment, and Valeryia to six years and six months in a penal colony
A couple convicted for participating in a march
Former Executive Director of Belarusbank Anatol Bahovik and his wife Ivanna were detained for participating in the 2020 protests and accused of organizing and preparing actions that grossly violate public order, or actively participating in them (Part 1 of Article 342 of the Criminal Code). The Bahoviks have two children. It is known that they were both sentenced to imprisonment. The exact terms are unknown.
Spouses involved in the Mačuliščy case
Aleh Sychou and Anastasiya Pilko were detained in connection with the case initiated by the KGB after the "attempt to commit an act of terrorism" in Mačuliščy. The couple has two minor children who are taken care of by their grandmother. Aleh was born in Krasnoyarsk, but moved to Belarus in the 2000s and has received citizenship. Recently, he worked as a printer at the Zmitser Kolas publishing house. Yana worked in many places, but her last known position was the director of the printing house of JSC Electronic Agent. It is known that they were tried in the summer or autumn of 2024, but the results are unknown.
The wife and husband who got married in a pre-trial detention center
Iryna Zlobina graduated from Belarusian State University (the Department of Philosophy and Social Sciences). In recent years, she has been engaged in her own small flower and souvenir production business. Andrei Alialsandrau is a Belarusian journalist and media manager. They were detained on January 12, 2021, by Interior Ministry officers. On September 1, 2022, Iryna and Andrei Alialsandrau got married in pre-trial detention center 1. The trial in the BelaPAN case began on June 6, 2022, and lasted exactly four months. On October 6, the Minsk Regional Court sentenced Andrei Alialsandrau to 14 years in a penal colony, and his wife Iryna Zlobina to 9 years in a penal colony.
Father and son convicted of political activity
- Photo: Viktar Babaryka's website
Viktar and Eduard Babaryka were detained on June 18, 2020, when they went to the Central Election Commission (CEC) to hand over the signatures collected for the presidential nomination. The Financial Investigations Department of the State Control Committee carried out their detention. Lawyers were not allowed to visit the detainees all day. On the same day, Eduard Babaryka was placed in the KGB pre-trial detention center.
Viktar Babaryka is the founder of the Chance International Relief Fund, the initiator of the TEART International Theater Forum, and the initiator of the Art-Belarus project, which returned works by Chagall, Soutine, and other famous artists to our country. With his assistance, the original of the Francysk Skaryna Bible was returned to Belarus. The initiator of the creation of the cultural hub OK16, a unique platform for the promotion of cultural projects. He set a record for the number of signatures collected by alternative candidates in the history of the presidential elections in Belarus. According to his headquarters, more than 430,000 were collected, and 365 thousand were submitted to the CEC. Eduard Babaryka graduated from Belarus State Economic University with a degree in Economics and Enterprise Management. He led the crowdfunding platforms Ulej and MolaMola. He enjoys horseback riding and diving. It is known that in the detention center, Eduard practiced yoga, read, learned to draw, and asked to send him books on chess.
Viktar Babaryka was sentenced to 14 years in a penal colony and Eduard to eight.
A family behind bars
- Brothers with their mothers. Photo on the right: Nasha Niva
First, in August 2020, Aliaksandr Frantskevich, an activist of the anarchist movement, was detained. He was sentenced to 17 years and nine months of imprisonment. Aliaksandr was also a political prisoner in 2010–2013. During his imprisonment, his story Hug Me Harder was published. When Aliaksandr was detained in 2020, his mother's sister, Natallia, and his cousin Illia Labatsevich joined a peaceful protest in Navapolack. When the riot police started beating a man next to them, they decided to stand up for him. As a result, they were also beaten. Illia began to defend his mother, for which he received a serious blow to the head with a baton. Illia was sentenced to one and a half years of imprisonment in a general security penal colony. He is already released.
All this time, the brothers were helped by their mothers, sisters Natallia Labatsevich and Tatsiana Frantskevich. However, in July 2024, they were also detained and charged under Articles 361-4 of the Criminal Code (assistance to extremist activities). Their mother and grandmother who is over 90 years old remains free.
"Solidarity helps a lot," Natallia said. "We pull each other out of the quagmire, as it has happened that we felt like giving up. How can we free our children? But then you think: 'No, we'll fight until we free everyone.'"
The following families are also held behind bars: Dzmitry Hudzik and his uncle Mikhail Staliarchuk, citizens of Ukraine; Vital Vaitsiakhovich, his wife Volha, son Uladzislau, and his wife Anastasiya; brothers Andrei and Maksim Lapatsin detained in the Mačuliščy case; Aliaksei Zachapila and his wife Liudmila Likhacheuskaya; Vitaliya Bandarenka and her husband Anatol Starasvetski; Katsiaryna Zaretskaya and her husband Viachaslau Pantsiushenka; brothers Mikhail and Viktar Tarasevich; brothers Matsvei and Leanid Aviarchuk; Hennadz Saurytski, his wife Iryna, and their daughter Viyaleta; Valer Raukouski and his wife Anastasiya Ilnitskaya; Siarhei Kabarchuk and his son Pavel Kabarchuk; Tatsiana Daniliuk and her husband Viachaslau Bierazavets; priest Siarhei Rezanovich, his wife Liubou and son Pavel; spouses Dzmitry and Aksana Malochka.
