At least 1,213 sentenced in administrative cases: repression intensifies in Belarus ahead of presidential elections
The next presidential elections in Belarus, which will be held on January 26, 2025, are accompanied by traditional repression. Armed security forces invade the homes of dozens of people every day. People are brutally detained; some are beaten and tortured. The situation before the new elections is only getting worse. At least 1,213 political administrative cases were heard in the courts from September to mid-November. The vast majority of trials were related to "spreading extremist materials." Mass detentions are taking place all over Belarus, even in small towns. Viasna reports how the authorities are "cleansing" the country of "extremists" before the 2025 elections.
Preventive "cleansing" of activists before the elections is a traditional practice of the regime. But now those who read independent media even if the news article concerns health, listen to Belarusian "extremist" bands, or express solidarity with political prisoners are persecuted. The brutal repression has not stopped for a single day since the start of the election campaign in 2020, but now the situation is only getting worse. Viasna human rights defenders analyzed how, compared with the summer months, the number of political trials in administrative cases increased in September, October, and the first half of November.
In total, over the past two and a half months, human rights defenders have recorded 1,452 cases of repression (detentions, searches, administrative trials, etc.). During this period, Belarusian judges heard 1,213 cases under Article 19.11 of the Administrative Code (distribution of extremist materials) and Article 24.23 of the Administrative Code (unauthorized picketing): 488 in September, 537 in October, and 188 in the first two weeks of November. At the same time, only 975 cases were heard during the three summer months. We note that all the figures may be significantly higher because human rights defenders do not have all the information about the repression.
There are more cases of persecution in the regions of Belarus than in Minsk. Thus, the most repressive region is Homieĺ — at least 337 people were convicted administratively. At least 98 people were sentenced in Rečyca alone. Brest region is in second place. At least 278 trials occurred there, most of which were heard in Brest. It is there that those who are detained at the border upon their return to Belarus are tried. In addition, residents of Baranavičy are also being tried en masse — 56 cases. Numerous cases are also heard in Barysaŭ, Vaŭkavysk, Hlybokaje, Dobrush, Žlobin, Liepieĺ, Mazyr, Navapolack, Orša, Pinsk, and other cities.
During the last known mass raid by security forces on October 31 and November 1, several dozen people were detained throughout Belarus. KGB officers came to people as part of criminal proceedings initiated under Article 357 of the Criminal Code (conspiracy or other actions committed with the aim of seizing state power). It is known that some detainees were questioned about neighborhood chats. On November 4, the KGB recognized some neighborhood chats as "extremist formations" — presumably, this was the reason for the mass detentions.
If you have faced politically motivated persecution, have been convicted in an administrative or criminal case, or have been prosecuted in a temporary detention facility, please inform human rights defenders via Telegram @Viasnainfo. Help us record all the facts of repression to show the world the scale of the human rights disaster in Belarus!
