All persecuted
- Home
- All persecuted
- Associations
- Twice political prisoners
- Human rights activists
Ales is the chairman and founder of the Viasna Human Rights Center and former vice president of the International Federation for Human Rights. He is a laureate of the Andrei Sakharov Freedom Prize and other international human rights awards. He was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize five times and won it in 2022.
Ales had previously been prosecuted. On August 4, 2011, he was arrested after Lithuania and Poland handed over his bank account information to Belarusian authorities. He was charged with concealing income on an especially large scale. On November 24, 2011, the court sentenced him to imprisonment in a maximum-security penal colony with confiscation of property. Ales pleaded not guilty, claiming that the funds were used exclusively for human rights activities. EU countries, the United States, and international human rights organizations recognized him as a political prisoner, and his sentence was politically motivated. He was released in the summer of 2014 under an amnesty.
On July 14, 2021, Ales was arrested again following a search of his apartment and office as part of a tax evasion case. In September 2022, that case was dropped, but he was charged with new charges of smuggling and financing group activities that grossly violate public order.
In March 2023, he was convicted and sentenced to imprisonment and ordered to pay substantial compensation. He pleaded not guilty in court.
In early November 2023, Ales was placed in a PKT for trumped-up reasons. In April–May 2024, he was returned to his unit, but he continues to be under increased scrutiny. He works in woodworking, receives penalties, and is deprived of parcels, video calls, and correspondence. It is known that his previous stint in the Bobruisk penal colony has left him with health problems that persist.
- Associations
- Human rights activists
- Parents of minors
Valentyn, a member of the Viasna Council and Vice President of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), is one of the most renowned human rights experts and analysts. He actively advocates for non-discrimination and against the death penalty, and has participated in international conferences, human rights missions, and election observation missions in OSCE countries.
On July 14, 2021, following a search of his apartment, he was taken away for questioning and then remanded in custody as part of a criminal case under the articles "tax evasion" and "organizing actions that grossly violate public order."
In September 2022, the tax evasion case was dropped, but new charges were brought against Valentin: smuggling and financing group activities that grossly violate public order.
On October 27, 2022, during the 41st Congress of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Valentin Stefanovic was re-elected as Vice-President of the organization.
In March 2023, he was convicted and sentenced to imprisonment and ordered to pay substantial compensation. Valentin pleaded not guilty in court.
According to available information, the conditions of detention were tightened and he was transferred to prison regime.
- Associations
- Activists
- Human rights activists
- Parents of minors
- Lawyers
Vladimir, a lawyer for the Viasna human rights center and coordinator of the Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections campaign, was detained along with his wife on July 14, 2021, following a search of their apartment. He was taken to the Financial Investigation Department and then to the Investigative Committee for questioning, after which he was remanded in custody for tax evasion.
In September 2022, the case under this article was dismissed, but new charges were brought against Vladimir: smuggling and financing group actions that grossly violate public order.
Vladimir is a finalist for the 2022 Belarusian Human Rights Community Award in the Human Rights Defender of the Year category.
In March 2023, he was convicted and sentenced to imprisonment and ordered to pay substantial compensation. He pleaded not guilty in court.
According to available information, the conditions of detention were tightened, and Vladimir was transferred to a prison regime.
- Associations
- Human rights activists
- Students
Marfa, a coordinator of the Viasna volunteer service, was detained on September 17, 2020. She was accused of "preparing for mass riots" and other "crimes." In February 2021, she was charged with additional charges, including "inciting social discord" and "participation in a criminal organization."
In September 2022, the court sentenced her to 15 years in prison, later reduced by three months. Marfa's health deteriorated in prison, including due to COVID.
- Associations
- Human rights activists
- Associations
- Human rights activists
Human rights activist and member of the Council of the Human Rights Center "Viasna" (HRC "Viasna"). Dmitry Solovyov has been engaged in human rights activities for more than 20 years, previously he headed the Novopolotsk branch of the Human Rights Center "Vesna". Dmitry Solovyov is one of the organizers of independent observation of elections in Belarus within the framework of the Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections campaign, including in the 2020 elections, as well as a participant in many international independent observation missions. The human rights activist also participates in the work of the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum.
8 years of imprisonment in a colony in absentia.
- Associations
- Activists
- Human rights activists
- Associations
- Activists
- Human rights activists
Andrei, an anarchist activist and volunteer for the Viasna human rights center, was detained in Minsk in October 2020. He was charged with participating in "mass riots" and other "crimes."
In 2022, he was sentenced to 6 years in prison, and in February 2023, the Supreme Court reduced the term by 3 months.
On April 18, 2025, he was released, having fully served the sentence imposed by the court.