Dozens foreigners victims of political reprisals in Belarus – rights group

April 5, Pozirk. Dozens of nationals of Ukraine, Poland, Russia, Latvia, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are held behind bars in Belarus on charges widely seen as politically motivated, says a recent report by the Viasna Human Rights Center.

Foreigners are usually charged with participating in protests, posting abusive comments and sharing information with banned independent media outlets or banned content with family members abroad, it noted.

After the start of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, Belarusian authorities intensified persecution of Ukrainians, accusing them of cooperation with the Ukrainian security services, the report stressed.

At least seven Ukrainians were convicted on charges of espionage, including Serhiy Boyko, Lyudmyla Honcharenko, Mykhaylo Stolyarchuk, Dmytro Hudik, Pavlo Kupriyenko, Andriy Shmay and Nataliya Zakharenko, Viasna said.

Ukrainian national Mykola Shveć remains in custody over the drone attack that damaged the Beriyev A-50 airborne early warning and control aircraft at a military air base near Minsk in February 2023.

In the fall of 2023, the Committee for State Security (KGB) said its agents arrested six persons on suspicion of “preparing terrorist acts,” including Ukrainians Vyacheslav Borodiy and Ivan Likholat.

Father and son Serhiy and Pavlo Kabarchuks from Ukraine were arrested on February 15 in a security operation near the Belarusian-Ukrainian border in the Homiel region. Both face charges of illegal border crossing and smuggling explosives.

Lidiya Hruk, a Ukrainian living in the Brest region’s Małaryta district, is persecuted for taking pictures of border facilities.

Latvians Alla Sokolenko, 57, and Dmitry Sivko, 45, were convicted in Belarus in 2023 and 2022 of spying and insulting an official, respectively.

Viasna described persecution of Sofia Sapega, a Russian national arrested in Belarus after the forced landing of the Ryanair flight in May 2021, as one of the most high-profile cases of reprisals against Russians. Sentenced to six years in prison, she was pardoned in June 2023.

Russian Dmitri Popov, a defendant in the case against the team of former presidential hopeful Siarhiej Cichanoŭski, was given 16 years in prison.

Another Russian national, Andrei Novikov, was deported to Russia after serving two and a half years in a Belarusian prison.

Yegor Dudnikov, a Russian national arrested in May 2021, was given 11 years in prison for allegedly calling for sanctions and inciting hatred.

Maksim Matyrko was given nine years after being found guilty of the intentional destruction of property.

Alexei Kulikov is on trial in Hrodna on terrorism-related charges, while Sergei Botvich, 59, was convicted of espionage.

Rights groups have information on three Polish nationals convicted on political grounds in Belarus: Jerzy Żywalewski and Tomasz Bereza of espionage and Robert Tampala of insulting Alaksandar Łukasenka and officials.

Belarusian authorities also persecuted Ildar Taukhitov, 62, from Uzbekistan for insulting Łukašenka.

Viktor Novik, an Uzbek national, and his wife were convicted on protest-related charges.

Vitaliy Skudarnov, a Kazakh national residing in the Homiel region, was convicted of inciting hatred and insulting Łukašenka and officials.

As of April 5, human rights defenders identified at least 1,400 political prisoners in Belarus but the real number is considerably higher because many cases go undocumented. Opposition sources estimate the number of political prisoners at around 5,000.

Politics Security

Politics, Security

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