Latest news with #Viasna
3 days ago
- Politics
Belarus journalist is convicted of treason and jailed for 10 years as crackdown on dissent continues
TALLINN, Estonia -- A Belarusian journalist was convicted of treason and revealing state secrets and was sentenced to 10 years in prison after a closed trial, a media group said Friday, the eve of the fifth anniversary of a disputed election that kept authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko in power and unleashed mass protests. Danil Palianski, who worked for several independent news agencies, was sentenced on July 25, but the trial's outcome was only revealed Friday by the Belarusian Association of Journalists. In addition to the prison sentence, Palianski was fined the equivalent of about $7,000. 'Belarus has already become the black hole of Europe, where people are judged for words and thoughts,' said BAJ leader Andrei Bastunets. Palianski, who was detained in September, is one of 37 journalists behind bars in Belarus. His jailing is part of a sustained crackdown on government critics after unprecedented mass protests following Lukashenko's disputed election on Aug. 9, 2020. Human rights groups say authorities have arrested more than 65,000 people, and hundreds of thousands more have fled the country in fear of persecution. There are about 1,187 political prisoners in Belarus, including Nobel Peace Prize laureate and peace activist Ales Bialiatski, according to the human rights group Viasna, which he founded.
Saudi Gazette
4 days ago
- Politics
- Saudi Gazette
Belarus targets government critics with continued raids and detention, activists say
BELARUS — Authorities in Belarus unleashed a new wave of raids and detentions against government critics who took part in opposition rallies abroad earlier this year, officials and rights advocates said on Wednesday. It's the latest move in a sweeping crackdown on dissent and freedom of speech by long-time authoritarian President Alexander Luksashenko. The country's Investigative Committee said it identified at least 207 participants in anti-Lukashenko rallies held in Poland, Lithuania, the United States, the UK and Canada to mark Belarus' short-lived independence in 1918 after the collapse of the Russian Empire. The raids, detentions and property seizures were carried out in the capital of Minsk and elsewhere across the country, authorities said. They didn't say how many people were targeted. Mass arrests, trials and convictions of government critics have continued since August 2020 when Lukashenko was handed a sixth term in office in an election that the opposition and the West denounced as rigged. In January, he was given another term in balloting also seen as orchestrated to keep him in office. Tens of thousands took to the streets in protest, in the biggest demonstrations the country has ever seen. Authorities unleashed a violent crackdown in response, detaining and beating thousands and driving some 500,000 more into exile abroad. The crackdown drew international condemnation, and the European Union and the US imposed sanctions on Belarus. Belarus' oldest and most prominent rights group, the Viasna centre, told the AP news agency that "dozens of activists in Belarus" have been detained in the most recent wave of arrests. Viasna activist Pavel Sapelka called it "the biggest wave of repression" this year. Viasna has recorded nearly 1,200 people held as political prisoners. The number includes the group's founder, Ales Bialiatski, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2022. At least eight political prisoners have died behind bars. Exiled Belarusian opposition figures have scheduled a rally in Warsaw for Saturday and Sunday to mark the fifth anniversary of the start of the mass protests. In response, the Belarusian Foreign Ministry summoned Poland's charge d'affaires on Tuesday and issued a note to denounce what they called a "destructive" and "hostile" event that "damages Belarusian-Polish relations." — Euronews
Euronews
5 days ago
- Politics
- Euronews
Belarus targets dozens of government critics with raids, activists say
Authorities in Belarus unleashed a new wave of raids and detentions against government critics who took part in opposition rallies abroad earlier this year, officials and rights advocates said on Wednesday. It's the latest move in a sweeping crackdown on dissent and freedom of speech by long-time authoritarian President Alexander Luksashenko. The country's Investigative Committee said it identified at least 207 participants in anti-Lukashenko rallies held in Poland, Lithuania, the United States, the UK and Canada to mark Belarus' short-lived independence in 1918 after the collapse of the Russian Empire. The raids, detentions and property seizures were carried out in the capital of Minsk and elsewhere across the country, authorities said. They didn't say how many people were targeted. Mass arrests, trials and convictions of government critics have continued since August 2020 when Lukashenko was handed a sixth term in office in an election that the opposition and the West denounced as rigged. In January, he was given another term in balloting also seen as orchestrated to keep him in office. Tens of thousands took to the streets in protest, in the biggest demonstrations the country has ever seen. Authorities unleashed a violent crackdown in response, detaining and beating thousands and driving some 500,000 more into exile abroad. The crackdown drew international condemnation, and the European Union and the US imposed sanctions on Belarus. Belarus' oldest and most prominent rights group, the Viasna centre, told the AP news agency that "dozens of activists in Belarus" have been detained in the most recent wave of arrests. Viasna activist Pavel Sapelka called it "the biggest wave of repression" this year. Viasna has recorded nearly 1,200 people held as political prisoners. The number includes the group's founder, Ales Bialiatski, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2022. At least eight political prisoners have died behind bars. Exiled Belarusian opposition figures have scheduled a rally in Warsaw for Saturday and Sunday to mark the fifth anniversary of the start of the mass protests. In response, the Belarusian Foreign Ministry summoned Poland's charge d'affaires on Tuesday and issued a note to denounce what they called a "destructive" and "hostile" event that "damages Belarusian-Polish relations."
5 days ago
- Politics
Belarus targets dozens of government critics with raids and detention, advocates say
TALLINN, Estonia -- Authorities in Belarus unleashed a new wave of raids and detentions against government critics who took part in opposition rallies abroad earlier this year, officials and rights advocates said Wednesday, the latest move in a sweeping crackdown on dissent and freedom of speech by authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko. The country's Investigative Committee said it identified at least 207 participants in anti-Lukashenko rallies held in Poland, Lithuania, the United States, the U.K. and Canada to mark Belarus' short-lived independence in 1918 after the collapse of the Russian Empire. The raids, detentions and property seizures were carried out in the capital of Minsk and elsewhere across the country, authorities said. They didn't say how many people were targeted. Mass arrests, trials and convictions of government critics have continued since August 2020 when Lukashenko was handed a sixth term in office in an election that the opposition and the West denounced as rigged. In January, he was given another term in balloting also seen as orchestrated to keep him in office. Tens of thousands took to the streets in protest, in the biggest demonstrations the country has ever seen. Authorities unleashed a violent crackdown in response, detaining and beating thousands and driving some 500,000 more into exile abroad. The crackdown drew international condemnation, and the U.S. and the European Union imposed sanctions on Belarus. Belarus' oldest and most prominent rights group, the Viasna center, told The Associated Press that 'dozens of activists in Belarus' have been detained in the most recent wave of arrests. Viasna activist Pavel Sapelka called it 'the biggest wave of repression' this year. Viasna has recorded nearly 1,200 people held as political prisoners. The number includes the group's founder, Ales Bialiatski, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2022. At least eight political prisoners have died behind bars. Exiled Belarusian opposition has scheduled a rally in Warsaw for Saturday and Sunday to mark the fifth anniversary of the start of the mass protests. In response, the Belarusian Foreign Ministry on Tuesday summoned Poland's charge d'affaires and issued a note to denounce what they called 'destructive' and 'hostile" event that 'damages Belarusian-Polish relations.'
San Francisco Chronicle
5 days ago
- Politics
- San Francisco Chronicle
Belarus targets dozens of government critics with raids and detention, advocates say
TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Authorities in Belarus unleashed a new wave of raids and detentions against government critics who took part in opposition rallies abroad earlier this year, officials and rights advocates said Wednesday, the latest move in a sweeping crackdown on dissent and freedom of speech by authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko. The country's Investigative Committee said it identified at least 207 participants in anti-Lukashenko rallies held in Poland, Lithuania, the United States, the U.K. and Canada to mark Belarus' short-lived independence in 1918 after the collapse of the Russian Empire. The raids, detentions and property seizures were carried out in the capital of Minsk and elsewhere across the country, authorities said. They didn't say how many people were targeted. Mass arrests, trials and convictions of government critics have continued since August 2020 when Lukashenko was handed a sixth term in office in an election that the opposition and the West denounced as rigged. In January, he was given another term in balloting also seen as orchestrated to keep him in office. Tens of thousands took to the streets in protest, in the biggest demonstrations the country has ever seen. Authorities unleashed a violent crackdown in response, detaining and beating thousands and driving some 500,000 more into exile abroad. The crackdown drew international condemnation, and the U.S. and the European Union imposed sanctions on Belarus. Belarus' oldest and most prominent rights group, the Viasna center, told The Associated Press that 'dozens of activists in Belarus' have been detained in the most recent wave of arrests. Viasna activist Pavel Sapelka called it 'the biggest wave of repression' this year. Viasna has recorded nearly 1,200 people held as political prisoners. The number includes the group's founder, Ales Bialiatski, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2022. At least eight political prisoners have died behind bars. Exiled Belarusian opposition has scheduled a rally in Warsaw for Saturday and Sunday to mark the fifth anniversary of the start of the mass protests. In response, the Belarusian Foreign Ministry on Tuesday summoned Poland's charge d'affaires and issued a note to denounce what they called 'destructive' and 'hostile" event that 'damages Belarusian-Polish relations.'
