US Embassy: lawyer Danilevič sentenced to 10 years for opposing war

April 11, BPN. The US Embassy in Belarus has commented on the sentence handed down to lawyer Alaksandr Danilevič by tweeting: “Belarus says it’s not part of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Yet the regime put Danilevič in prison for 10 years merely for opposing the war.”

“Such actions show Łukašenka is out of step with the Belarusian people and most of the world on the war and on respect for fundamental freedoms,” it added.

Belarusian opposition leader Śviatłana Cichanoŭskaja tweeted that “lawyers are often the only lifeline for political prisoners and now they face the criminal regime’s revenge.”

The Minsk City Court handed down the prison sentence on defense attorney Alaksandr Danilevič on April 10.

Judge Taćciana Falkoŭskaja found him guilty of promoting extremism and calling for sanctions threatening national security.

Danilevič has been in custody since May 2022. Human rights activists said his persecution was politically motivated.

The prosecutor’s office said he assisted Alaksandra Hierasimienia and Alaksandr Apiejkin, founders of the embattled Belarusian Sports Solidarity Foundation (BSSF). He also allegedly helped strike committees to draft appeals on violations of workers’ rights and “urged the management of a foreign company to terminate contractual relations with the Belarusian counterparty.” On top of that, he gave an interview to an “extremist” media outlet, the prosecutors charged.

Pressure on the legal profession in Belarus mounted after the 2020 election campaign. Lawyers virtually lost their independence: since 2021, they can only work in legal consultancies whose heads are appointed by the justice ministry’s approval. Alaksandr Łukašenka said that the lawyers should be “under control.”