{"id":158865,"date":"2025-10-07T11:39:46","date_gmt":"2025-10-07T08:39:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/158865\/"},"modified":"2026-03-10T12:05:06","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T12:05:06","slug":"reprisals-wargaming-co-founder-given-lengthy-prison-term-in-absentia","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/158865\/","title":{"rendered":"Reprisals: Wargaming co-founder given lengthy prison term in absentia"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

October 7, Pozirk.<\/em><\/strong> New cases of politically-motivated persecution were documented in Belarus from October 4 to 6, including the conviction of Mika\u0142aj Kaca\u0142apa\u016d, co-founder of the Wargaming company, who was given 13 years in prison without him being present at the trial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Authorities accused him of financing extremist and terrorist activities in connection with donations to opposition initiatives. The judge also ruled to fine him 2.1 million rubels (about $690.000), according to the Minsk City Court.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

D\u017amitryj Baradzina\u016d in Mahilo\u016d was convicted of facilitating extremist activities and is most likely serving a non-custodial sentence, the Homiel branch of the Viasna Human Rights Center reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pressure on exiles<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vlogger Karalina Kananovi\u010d, who lives in the Netherlands, said on YouTube said she had been arrested in early June during her trip to Belarus. She had been given a restricted freedom term on protest-related charges, but managed to leave Belarus before the sentence entered into force.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

People entering Belarus are subject to continued phone checks, interrogations and arrests at border checkpoints, Viasna warned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Belarusian law enforcers have suggested downgrading criminal charges to minor offenses for exiles who return, Euroradio<\/em> reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arrests<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stanis\u0142a\u016d Ma\u010da\u0142a\u016d, a former designated political prisoner, and his wife \u015aviat\u0142ana Jakubovi\u010d have been held in custody in Homiel since last October, Viasna\u2019s Homiel branch said. Authorities have not disclosed the charges against them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Residents of one of Homiel region\u2019s towns face arrests and phone checks at work for allegedly participating in an online poll in August 2020, which had 2.4 million participants, Flagshtok <\/em>reported. The poll showed that 51 percent of the respondents voted for \u015aviat\u0142ana Cichano\u016dskaja in that year’s presidential election as opposed to 4 percent who supported Alaksandar \u0141uka\u0161enka.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Extremist designations<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The interior ministry branded the Sand\u04d3r Telegram channel and chat as an extremist group, listing U\u0142adzis\u0142a\u016d Bu\u0107vianko\u016d and Usieva\u0142ad Ma\u010dekin as members. The reasons remain unclear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The information ministry announced extremist content designations for a Facebook page by a Belarusian community group in Poland, Jana\u016d<\/em> and Pinsk Rulit!<\/em> on Odnoklassniki and viciebsk.liv\u0435<\/em> on TikTok.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other cases<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the inmates at the penal Colony no 15 in Mahilo\u016d had his tattoo with the Pahonia coat of arms forcibly removed, opposition activist Siarhiej Spary\u0161, pardoned last month, said on social media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Authorities running Detention Center No 3 in Homiel refuse to switch on the heating despite cold weather, MAYDAY TEAM<\/em> reported, noting the growing number of inmates suffering from colds.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

At least 8,905 people have faced politically-motivated criminal charges since 2020, with some 7,565 convicted in politically-motivated cases, Viasna said in its recent report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Viasna recorded 96 cases of reprisals last month, including arrests and searches, with continued persecution of 2020 protesters and systematic repression targeting activists, journalists and human rights defenders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As of October 7, human rights defenders identified at least 1,196 political prisoners but the real number is considerably higher because many cases go undocumented.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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