Political persecution:
Due to his activities, he has repeatedly faced politically motivated persecution.
For instance, in 2013, he was fined for distributing the book Maladafrontaŭcy.
On 21 March 2017, after the Debut literary award ceremony, KGB special unit “Alpha” detained him as part of the “White Legion” case. He spent three months in detention.
Years later, on 17 February 2026, Aleś Jaŭdacha was detained in Minsk, during a broader sweep in which human rights defenders reported that at least ten people—including publishers, publishing house staff, and book distributors—were also detained.
On 3 March 2026, the KGB declared a non-existent “coalition of publishing houses” an “extremist formation.” In doing so, the KGB arbitrarily listed unrelated publishing houses and book distributors as part of this alleged coalition. Among those named were Belarusian-language publishers Kamunikat.org, Lohvinau Publishing House, and Andrei Yanushkevich Publishing.
In connection with the so-called “formation”, the list mentions the publishers detained on 17 February — Zmicier Kołas, Vacłaŭ Bahdanovič, and Aleś Jaŭdacha, as well as Jarosław Iwaniuk, Ihar Łohvinaŭ, and Andrej Januškievič, who are currently abroad.
As a result of these developments, on 13 March 2026, Aleś Jaŭdacha was recognised as a political prisoner.
Creative activity:
He founded the online bookstore knihi.by to distribute Belarusian literature worldwide.