Belarus
Free expression in Belarus has been steadily deteriorating in recent years. Following the illegitimate 2020 election, which sparked international condemnation and widespread protests, threats against writers, artists, and other dissenting voices have increased. Political prisoners have been subject to ill-treatment, including incommunicado detention and torture. The Belarusian government has targeted writers already living in exile. Authorities have also targeted family members of exiled writers, who have been subjected to arbitrary searches, detentions, and other forms of harassment.
What You Need to Know
According to PEN Belarus, as of December 31, 2023, there were at least 1,499 cultural rights violations and human rights violations against cultural figures in Belarus.
The suppression of dissenting speech—by means of arrest, judicial harassment, and exile—has resulted in the imprisonment of writers critical of the Belarusian and Russian government.
While Belarusian is one of the official languages of the country, Belarusian speakers experience discrimination in sectors including publishing and higher education.
News
Individual Cases
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Valeria Kostyugova
Status: ImprisonedPolitical analyst and writer Kostyugova is editor of the online community Our Opinion and its annual publication Belarusian Yearbook. In… More
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Ales Bialacki
Status: ImprisonedBialacki is a writer, literary critic, and head of human rights group Viasna. In July 2021, he was arrested on… More
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Uladzimir Matskevich
Status: ImprisonedMatskevich is a philosopher who was arrested in a home raid on August 4, 2021 and detained in restrictive conditions,… More
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Svetlana Alexievich
Status: Continued HarassmentA renowned literary writer, essayist and Belarus’s first ever Nobel Prize winner, Alexievich was charged for alleged “appeals to overthrow… More