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Human rights in Belarus. The national flag of 1918 and 1991–1995 has become a symbol of the opposition to the regime of president Alexander Lukashenko. The government of Belarus is criticized for its human rights violations and persecution of non-governmental organisations, independent journalists, national minorities, and opposition politicians.
GENEVA (5 July 2021) – Belarus has witnessed an unprecedented human rights crisis over the past year, an independent expert appointed by the Human Rights Council said today, calling on authorities to end their policy of repression and to fully respect the legitimate aspirations of their people.
03 February 2023. UN symbol. A/HRC/52/68. Focus. Belarus. In the present report, submitted pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 49/26, the High Commissioner sets out the findings of the examination of the human rights situation in Belarus since May 2020 and makes recommendations to relevant stakeholders.
- Governmental Crackdown on Peaceful Protests and Dissent
- Human Rights Defenders, Civil Society Groups, and Lawyers
- Freedom of Expression, Attacks on Journalists
- Prosecution of Political Opposition Members and Supporters
- Humanitarian Crisis and Violence at Belarus-Poland Border
- Death Penalty
- Key International Actors
According to the prominent Belarusian human rights organization Viasna, at least 3,458 people faced criminal prosecution in connection with the 2020 mass protests between November 2021 and October 2022, and more than 3,148people faced administrative sanctions. Authorities increasingly used charges of “dissemination of extremist materials” to prosec...
At time of writing, three members of Viasna, which had been particularly hard hit by the authorities, remained behind bars on bogus “smuggling” and “financing group actions that disrupted public order” charges, including its leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner Ales Bialiatski, vice-chair Valentin Stefanovich, and lawyer Uladzimir Labkovich. Three o...
From January to October, the Belarusian Association of Journalists documented 93 cases of arbitrary detention, raids, fines, and administrative arrests of journalists. At time of writing, 28journalists and media workers were behind bars on bogus criminal charges ranging from “insulting the president” to “treason” and “conspiracy to seize state powe...
In December, a court in Homiel delivered judgement in the case against former presidential contender Siarhei Tsikhanouski and his five alleged supporters charged with “organizing mass protests.” Tsikhanouski, who is married to the Belarusian opposition leader in exile Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, was sentenced to 18 years in prison. The other defendan...
Starting in August 2021, Belarusian authorities orchestrated a humanitarian crisis by facilitating tourist visas to thousands of migrants, mainly from the Middle East, to encourage them to travel to the European Union borders. Pushed back toBelarus at the EU borders, migrants suffered serious abuses, including beatings and at least one instance of ...
Belarus remains the only country in Europe and Central Asia to carry out the death penalty. Authorities take months to inform families of an execution and refuse to disclose the place of burial, causing additional suffering. In November 2021, the family of Viktar Paulau, who had been sentenced to death following his conviction for murder and larcen...
In November 2021, 35 OSCE statesinvokedthe Vienna Human Dimension Mechanism, highlighting the failure of Belarusian authorities to investigate and remedy gross human rights violations. Between December 2021 and September 2022, the United States, Canada, the European Union, and the United Kingdom introduced further sanctionsagainst Belarus in respon...
Mar 9, 2022 · The Belarusian Government’s continuing crackdown on political opponents, civil society, journalists and lawyers has seen the fundamental human rights of tens of thousands violated, with...
Mar 9, 2022 · GENEVA - The fundamental human rights of tens of thousands of people in Belarus have been violated and the lives of countless others negatively affected by the Government’s continued crackdown on opponents, civil society, journalists and lawyers, without yet seeing the perpetrators held accountable, a report published today by the UN Human Right...
Mar 20, 2024 · 20 March 2024 Human Rights. With the number of political prisoners growing and a shutdown of civic space, people in Belarus are being deprived of their rights to freedom of expression,...
