Alena Dzmitryyeuna Pyrkh

Natalia is a pediatrician, psychiatrist-narcologist, psychotherapist, existential philosopher, and psychologist. She was detained in September 2021 at her workplace—the Minsk Center for Child Psychiatry and Psychotherapy—as part of a criminal case opened for online comments following the deaths of KGB officer Dmitry Fedosyuk and IT specialist Andrei Zeltser in Minsk. Several hours before her arrest, she was informed of her dismissal.

In September 2022, she was found guilty of "inciting hatred or discord" and "insulting a government official," and sentenced to imprisonment and a large fine.

In January 2023, she was released , having fully served her court-appointed sentence.

On May 27, 2026, special proceedings (a procedure for an in absentia criminal investigation and trial) were initiated against Natalia.

Elena was arrested in September 2021 as part of a criminal case opened for online comments following the deaths of KGB officer Dmitry Fedosyuk and IT specialist Andrei Zeltser in Minsk.

In August 2022, she was found guilty of "inciting hatred or discord" and "insulting a government official" and sentenced to imprisonment.

In September 2023, she was released, having fully served her sentence imposed by the court.

Yana was arrested in September 2021 in connection with a criminal case opened under the article "Desecration of state symbols." In December of that year, she was found guilty of tearing down a flag on a street in Gomel and sentenced to imprisonment in a penal colony.

She was released in June 2022, having fully served her sentence as imposed by the court.

Olga was arrested in September 2021 for painting over 80 bales of haylage, after which a criminal case was opened against her for malicious hooliganism. She was remanded in custody pending trial and placed in a temporary detention facility.

In January 2022, Olga was charged with "gross violation of public order, expressed in an attempt to distract drivers and disrupt traffic" and sentenced to imprisonment in a penal colony.

She was released in May 2022, having fully served her sentence as imposed by the court.

Elena was arrested in September 2021 for painting over 80 bales of haylage, after which a criminal case was opened against her for malicious hooliganism. She was remanded in custody pending trial and placed in a temporary detention facility.

In January 2022, Elena was charged with "gross violation of public order, expressed in an attempt to distract drivers and disrupt traffic" and sentenced to imprisonment in a penal colony.

She was released in May 2022, having fully served her sentence as imposed by the court.

After her release, pressure continued to be exerted on Elena; in June 2022, she was detained by KGB officers. She was subsequently forced to leave Belarus.

Larisa was first arrested on September 27, 2020, and convicted of an administrative offense. After the trial, she suffered a seizure and was admitted to a psychiatric hospital. Larisa suffers from depressive anxiety disorder and claustrophobia.

On August 6, 2021, security forces came to her workplace, conducted a search, and after interrogation, placed her in a temporary detention facility for three days. After this period, she was charged with violence or threat of violence against police officers for participating in a Sunday march on September 27, 2020, in Gomel, during which security forces used tear gas and stun grenades. According to the prosecution, Larisa "used brute force to grab a security officer by the arm, move him, and thereby obstruct his work."

In December 2021, Larisa was found guilty and sentenced to imprisonment in a penal colony.

She was released in May 2023, having fully served her sentence as imposed by the court.

Natalia was convicted in August 2021 in a criminal case opened on charges of insulting Lukashenko and destroying official documents. According to the prosecution, police officers arrived at Natalia's home on May 27, 2021. There, according to investigators, she "publicly insulted" Lukashenko with the words "we have a f*cking state" and "a f*cking president," thereby committing a crime, according to the prosecution. An hour later, investigators conducted a search of her apartment. During the search, the prosecution alleges, Natalia, "wanting to express her superiority and permissiveness," tore up the police report, thereby "damaging an official document."

She was released in March 2022 as part of a pardon.

Irina, editor-in-chief and director of the BelaPAN news agency, was detained on August 18, 2021, following searches of her home and the agency's offices, as well as an interrogation. She was initially placed in pretrial detention for 72 hours as part of a criminal case under the article "organizing or preparing actions that grossly violate public order, or participating in them." However, she was not released and was transferred to a pretrial detention center 10 days later. The charge was later amended to tax evasion.

In November 2021, it was revealed that Irina had also been charged with "creating an extremist group." In October 2022, she was found guilty of "participating in an extremist group," sentenced to imprisonment, and banned from holding certain positions for five years.

Irina was released in December 2024, having fully served her sentence imposed by the court.

Anna, a prominent activist who supported Viktor Babaryka, was arrested on July 26, 2021, in connection with a criminal case opened for defamation against Lukashenko. In November of that year, she was found guilty and sentenced to imprisonment in a penal colony.

According to human rights activists, she was released in the spring of 2024, having fully served her sentence.

Nadezhda, the vocalist of the band IRDORATH, was detained on the evening of August 2, 2021, at a dacha near Minsk while celebrating her birthday with other musicians and guests.

In December of that year, she was found guilty of "organizing and preparing actions that grossly violate public order, or actively participating in them" for her participation in post-election protests that took place in Minsk in 2020.

She was released in April 2023, having fully served her sentence as imposed by the court.

Yulia, a choral conductor and backing vocalist for several projects by the band IRDORATH, was detained on the evening of August 2, 2021, at a dacha near Minsk during the birthday celebration of IRDORATH vocalist Nadezhda Kalach, along with other musicians, as part of a criminal case.

In December of that year, she was found guilty of "organizing actions that grossly violate public order, as well as training or other preparation of individuals to participate in such actions" for her participation in post-election protests that took place in Minsk in 2020.

She was released in October 2022, having fully served her sentence as imposed by the court.

Previously, Tatyana worked at the Lida District Executive Committee as a senior inspector in the documentation department. In August 2021, she was convicted in a criminal case brought under the articles "insulting a government official" and "insulting Lukashenko" and sentenced to imprisonment in a penal colony. She was taken into custody in the courtroom. At the time of her arrest, Tatyana was on maternity leave.

In January 2023, she was released, having fully served her sentence.

Yulia was first convicted, along with her husband, of "participating in group actions grossly violating public order" in a criminal case opened following a protest that took place on September 13, 2020, in Brest. During the protest, people were singing and dancing in circles, but a water cannon was used against them. The court sentenced Yulia to a restricted freedom order in the form of "house arrest."

Several months later, on October 13, 2021, her home was searched, after which she was detained in connection with a new criminal case and placed in pretrial detention. She was convicted a second time in July 2022 on six criminal charges, accused of providing information about officials involved in the criminal prosecution of her family. The court sentenced Yulia to imprisonment and a fine. On appeal, the court reduced her prison term by only three months and reduced the fine. Ultimately, her final sentence was 4 years and 9 months.

In January 2025, it became known that Yulia had been tried for a third time under the article on “assisting extremist activity.”

In the fall of 2025 , she was released, having fully served her sentence.

Marina, a confidant of presidential candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, was detained on July 9, 2021, as part of a "KGB operation to purge radicals" and placed in pretrial detention on charges of financing the activities of an extremist group.

On November 10, 2021, the charge was reclassified to a more lenient charge—"training and preparing individuals to participate in actions that grossly violate public order, as well as their financing or other material support." After this, she was placed under house arrest.

On November 11, 2022, the court sentenced Marina to one and a half years of imprisonment in a general regime penal colony, taking her into custody in the courtroom.

She was released in June 2023, having fully served her sentence as imposed by the court.