Valiantsin Stefanovich from behind the bars: "Stay bright-eyed and be proud of what you are doing!"

Valiantsin Stefanovich, “Viasna” deputy chairman and vice-president of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), has been held behind bars for five months now. For the last three weeks, Valiantsin has been staying in a prison hospital with pneumonia, but, according to his recent letter dated of December 11, he is already feeling better. In his letter, Valiantsin congratulated his colleagues on the International Human Rights Day and reflected on the current socio-political situation in Belarus:

"Yesterday was our professional holiday, International Human Rights Day. I don’t know if you celebrated it in any way. But I must say that everything that has happened to us once again clearly demonstrates the importance of our mission, its importance for our entire society and all people. “Viasna” has always been and remains one of the brightest and most important organizations in the human rights community. We stood at the origins of the human rights movement in Belarus in the 90s, we have been and remain at the forefront, always with our people. And now, our imprisonment is nothing but a “praise” of our activities by the political regime. By imprisoning human rights defenders, they have drawn increasing attention to the important issue of political prisoners. So, we have done everything right. We are always with the people. And now we are right next to people — in prison.

Looking back, I’m so proud of what we have done, of our persistent hard work. Work that sometimes looks hopeless, but it may seem so only at first glance. Therefore, dear friends, on our professional day, stay bright-eyed and be proud of what you are doing!"