{"id":188639,"date":"2026-05-22T15:29:11","date_gmt":"2026-05-22T12:29:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/188639\/"},"modified":"2026-05-22T15:29:12","modified_gmt":"2026-05-22T12:29:12","slug":"belpol-500000-people-faced-reprisals-in-belarus-since-may-2020","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/188639\/","title":{"rendered":"BelPol: 500,000 people faced reprisals in Belarus since May 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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May 22, Pozirk.<\/em> <\/strong>A total of 500,000 people faced politically-motivated persecution in Belarus between May 2020 and April 2026, according to the BelPol opposition group\u2019s report presented today at the Congress on Political Prisoners in Vilnius. \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The group cited data by the human rights initiative Dissidentby, which recorded 190 cases of politically- motivated criminal prosecution in 2020, with numbers rising to 1,595 in 2021 and 2,363 in 2022. In the subsequent years, the number of such cases fluctuated between 1,346 and 1,761. In the first quarter of 2026, 314 cases were reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the figures may not accurately reflect the scale of the crackdown, as authorities began withholding information on court hearings and verdicts in 2024, making it harder for human rights defenders to document cases, BelPol noted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The activists added that the number of new politically-motivated criminal cases continues to exceed the number of people released or completing their sentences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

BelPol also said that while legislation has not changed significantly since 2020, its interpretation by the authorities has shifted dramatically. Actions previously treated as harmless or minor offences are now increasingly classified as crimes, including serious ones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Belarusian officials\u2019 interpretation of \u201cterrorism\u201d and \u201cextremism\u201d has diverged sharply from international practice since the 2020 presidential election to cover all opposition activities or expression of dissent, the group said. Any links to the pro-democracy movement are increasingly treated as criminal offences and labelled \u201cextremist,\u201d it stressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many of the former designated political prisoners who remained in Belarus are subjected to \u201cpreventive supervision\u201d or \u201cpreventive monitoring,\u201d measures that often impose significant restrictions on their rights in Belarus, BelPol noted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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