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NL Fraudulent elections in Belarus: continued support for opposition and political prisoners essential
"A senseless farce" is how Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya described the recent local and parliamentary elections in her country. Only parties swearing allegiance to dictator Lukashenka were allowed to run, the opposition in exile called for a boycott. They were the first elections since the highly controversial 2020 presidential election, in which Lukashenko ran for a sixth term [...]
The Belarusian revolution did not end in 2020 - it is still ongoing
Photo: Protest rally against Lukashenko, 30 August 2020. Minsk, Belarus (WikiMedia Commons) August 2020. More than three years have passed since the massive protests in Belarus following the dubious presidential election won by Alexander Lukashenka. Tens of thousands questioning the election results took to the streets. These mass protests were then harshly [...]
Joint international campaign for justice by Belarusian judges
On Libereco's initiative, 20 human rights organisations from 10 different countries, including FMS, signed a letter sent to 413 Belarusian judges. In the letter, the organisations highlight the involvement of judges in human rights violations and the unjust detention of innocent people in Belarus. The addressed judges have been involved in the political processes [...]
World Press Freedom Day: we reflect on journalists from Belarus
Image created by Libereco - Partnership for Human Rights Today is World Press Freedom Day. Today we stand in solidarity with all journalists, bloggers and bringers of free speech in Belarusian prisons. See some of their faces here, to remind us who we have to fight for every day. Image created by Libereco - Partnership [...]
Struggling despite repression: Belarusian social democrats portrayed in exhibition
Some 1,300 people are detained on political grounds in Belarus, in appalling conditions. Following the fraudulent elections and subsequent mass protests in 2020, repression against the country's democratic opposition has only intensified. The Lukashenka regime is directly following the lead of its eastern neighbour in the Kremlin, complicit in the brutal Russian invasion [...]
Nikolai Statkevich: 'As a Belarusian, I am used to solitary confinement'
Military analyses from the penal camp Nikolai Statkevich is chairman of the Social Democratic Party 'Narodnaya Gromada' in Belarus. Under Alexander Lukashenko's regime, he had previously spent eight years in various prisons and camps because of his political activities. A few months before the 2020 presidential elections and subsequent mass protests, he was imprisoned in broad daylight [...]
Demonstration for the release of Nobel laureate and all political prisoners in Belarus
Human rights defender Ales Bialiatski is one of three winners of this year's Nobel Peace Prize. But since he has been imprisoned in Belarus since July 2021, others will have to receive his prize on his behalf. On 25 November, the day he was detained for 500 days, association of Belarusians in the Netherlands organised [...]
How walls are still seen as a solution in 'Fortress Europe'
Today marks exactly 23 years since the Berlin Wall fell. For Europe, it seemed the impetus to blur borders and bet on unity and free mobilisation. Divisions caused by physical walls seemed to be a thing of the past. Today, however, walls are on the rise again Between Poland and [...]
The four trees commemoration: where past and present meet
Protests against the Belarusian regime, Minsk, August 2020 (WikiMedia Commons) Last Friday 16 September, the annual four trees commemoration in Eindhoven took place again. This commemoration commemorates four opposition members who disappeared in Belarus in 1999 and 2000. Today, it is still uncertain what happened to Anatoly Krasovsky, Viktor Gonchar, Yuri [...]
Constitution Belarus amended after referendum, fear of further integration with Russia grows
A controversial amendment to the constitution was passed in a referendum in Belarus last Sunday. The amendments give President Lukashenko far-reaching powers to remain in power until 2035. Another clause that deletes Belarus as a neutral, non-nuclear power is also controversial. It heightens fears that Belarus will be further integrated into Russia.
