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Home / Writers at Risk / Maria Kolesnikova
A woman with short blonde hair, wearing a black turtleneck and black leather jacket, smiles while sitting indoors with shelves of books in the background.

Maria Kolesnikova

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Musician and opposition figure Kolesnikova campaigned against President Lukashenka in 2020. In September 2020, she was kidnapped and detained for her activism. Her trial began in August 2021. She was sentenced to 11 years in prison in September for charges including terrorism and forming an extremist group. In November 2024, after more than 20 months without communication, she was briefly seen during a meeting with her father in a prison hospital where she was being treated for serious health issues.