Political persecutions

Kirill was convicted of "participating in group actions that grossly violate public order" in a criminal case opened after a protest that took place in Brest on September 13, 2020. At that time, the participants were singing and dancing in circles, and a water cannon was used against them. According to the prosecution, the action disrupted the operation of public transport.

Before he began serving his sentence, he left Belarus.

In December 2024, it became known that a court hearing in absentia was held regarding Kirill to replace the restriction of freedom with imprisonment in a penal colony.

Since 2020, Elena has been subjected to systematic politically motivated persecution: she has been detained and arrested 17 times under administrative law and fined a total of 173 basic units. Her home has been searched repeatedly.

In May 2021, Elena was convicted of "participating in group actions grossly violating public order" in a criminal case opened following a protest on September 13, 2020, in Brest, where participants were singing songs and dancing in circles when a water cannon was used against them. According to the prosecution, the protest disrupted public transportation. She was sentenced to restricted freedom without being sent to a correctional facility.

In September of that year, Elena was convicted again for "insulting Lukashenko." The combined sentence amounted to three years of house arrest.

In January 2022, she was arrested for "violating a sentence" and sentenced to 15 days of administrative arrest. However, she was never released—she was transferred to a pretrial detention center as part of a new criminal case opened for slandering Lukashenko and discrediting the Republic of Belarus. In June, she was sentenced to imprisonment and a large fine.

In April 2023, Elena was convicted again under the article "malicious disobedience of the demands of the prison administration." This article is often applied to prisoners who refuse to cooperate with the administration, for fictitious violations.

It is known that Elena is constantly subjected to physical and psychological pressure. She is regularly placed in solitary confinement and isolation cells, deprived of almost all packages, phone calls, and visits, and her grocery allowance has been reduced from three basic units to one.

In February 2025, Polina Sharendo-Panasyuk reported that Elena had been placed back in the punishment cell : "After several weeks in solitary confinement, she was transferred to the punishment cell. There's a 99% chance they'll trumped up Article 411 against her again."

On December 13, 2025, she was released after another visit to Minsk by US President Donald Trump's special representative, Keith Kellogg, and taken to Ukraine.

Alla was convicted of participating in a protest against violence in the country and the falsification of the presidential elections - the Unity March, which took place in Grodno on September 6, 2020.

Vitaly was convicted in a criminal case opened after a protest held on August 10, 2020 in Novopolotsk against the falsification of the presidential elections, for "participation in group actions that grossly violate public order", and was sentenced to restriction of freedom. However, in June, he was released from the correctional facility pending appeal, as the prosecutor filed a protest. In late June, his sentence was changed to imprisonment.

Vitaly left Belarus.

Andrei, a technician at the Institute of Meat and Dairy Industry, was convicted for comments left on the Telegram channel “Punishermen of Belarus” addressed to Dmitry Balaba, the commander of the OMON of the Main Directorate of Internal Affairs of the Minsk City Executive Committee.

Matvey, a freight forwarder and student at the Minsk College of Entrepreneurship, was convicted for participating in a protest action, the March for the Liberation of Political Prisoners, which took place on October 4, 2020, in Minsk.

In December 2024, it became known that a court hearing in absentia was held regarding Matvey to replace the restriction of freedom with imprisonment in a penal colony.

Andrei is a Russian citizen and a volunteer for Svetlana Tikhanovskaya's initiative group. He was first detained on June 6, 2020, in Belarus for participating in a picket to collect signatures, which was considered an unauthorized event. He was soon charged under the article on "preparing and organizing actions that grossly violate public order."

On November 26, 2020, Andrei was taken to the border with Russia and banned from entering Belarus for 10 years. He left behind a wife and two children in the country.

On April 13, 2021, he was detained again in the village of Prusy, where he had secretly come to visit his family. He was later convicted of “illegal border crossing,” although the charges in the previous case were not dropped.

He was released in October 2022 after completing his sentence and deported to Russia.

Gennady was convicted of "participation in group actions that grossly violate public order" in a criminal case opened after a protest that took place in Brest on September 13, 2020. During the protest, people sang and danced in circles, and a water cannon was used against them.

Alexander was arrested in connection with a criminal case brought for damaging three "Tabakeroks". He was convicted of writing the words "Tribunal" and "OMON" on two of them.

Ilya was arrested in connection with a criminal case brought for damaging three "Tabakeroks". He was convicted of writing the words "OMON" and "Sasha" on one of them, along with obscene language.

Daniil was detained as part of a criminal case opened for damaging three "Tabakeroks". He was taken to the Investigative Committee, where he was interrogated for two days without food, water or toilet, so that he would take all the blame on himself.

He was convicted for depicting on one of them a cross with four letters: OGSB.

Yulia was detained at the end of January 2021 on charges of blocking roads in Romanovskaya Sloboda in Minsk on December 20, 2020 and January 3, 2021. The reason was that the girl and a group of people stood at a pedestrian crossing twice for about a minute with flags in support of political prisoners.

After her arrest, Yulia was interrogated for six days, as a result of which she lost consciousness from exhaustion and dehydration and was hospitalized. Before her trial, she was under house arrest and convicted of "participation in group actions that grossly violate public order."

Olga was convicted for a comment left in one of the Telegram channels addressed to Lukashenko.

Alexander, a renowned Belarusian political scientist and literary scholar, was previously a member of Lukashenko's campaign team and briefly served in his administration after his victory. He subsequently resigned and became one of the most vocal critics of the first Belarusian president.

On April 12, 2021, he was arrested in Moscow and later extradited. He was charged with "conspiracy or other actions committed with the intent to seize state power." In September 2022, he was sentenced to a lengthy prison term.

On December 13, 2025, he was released after another visit to Minsk by US President Donald Trump's special representative, Keith Kellogg, and taken to Ukraine.

Lidiya, a moderator of the Telegram channel "Zhodino for Life", was detained in March 2021 on charges of coordinating "yard" protest movements and calling for active actions. She was later convicted under the articles "organization and preparation of actions that grossly violate public order, or active participation in them" and "insulting a government official".