UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus Nils Muižnieks has presented a new report on the human rights situation in Belarus, dedicating a separate section to violations of cultural rights in the country. Its central conclusion is that the Belarusian authorities are no longer targeting only political opponents or civil society activists. Instead, they are systematically reshaping the country’s cultural space, where Belarusian identity itself is increasingly treated as a “marker of opposition.”
Key findings of the new report
🔻 Culture has become a direct target of repression
Writers, artists, musicians, actors, publishers, scholars, journalists, and civil society activists who preserve and promote Belarus’s cultural, historical, and linguistic heritage continue to face persecution.
🔻 Large-scale repression continues
Despite the release of some political prisoners, politically motivated arrests continue across the country. Those who are released often face intolerable conditions, including ongoing harassment and restrictions that, in many cases, force them to leave Belarus.
🔻 Culture is being criminalized
Expressions of Belarusian identity are increasingly treated by the authorities as evidence of political disloyalty. Independent publishers and book distributors have been particularly hard hit. The banning of literature has become a deliberate state policy. Independent publishing houses have been arbitrarily designated as “extremist formations,” while anti-extremism legislation is being used against literary works, authors, cultural organizations, and even their audiences.
🔻 The Belarusian language is increasingly viewed as a sign of disloyalty
Monitoring findings indicate that the Belarusian language is increasingly perceived by the authorities as a marker of political disloyalty. Discrimination against Belarusian speakers occurs in state institutions, courts, places of detention, educational institutions, and the media.
🔻 The state seeks to control historical memory
The use of the white-red-white flag and the Pahonia coat of arms is prosecuted as a sign of opposition. At the same time, the education system and state propaganda promote pro-Russian and Soviet-centered interpretations of history. The Special Rapporteur identifies this as part of a broader policy aimed at controlling the expression of cultural and national identity.
🔻 Transnational repression
A significant part of Belarus’s independent cultural life has been forced into exile. Yet artists and cultural actors abroad continue to face reprisals, including trials in absentia, threats against their relatives, confiscation of property, and the denial of access to identity documents. Organizations and initiatives in exile are routinely designated as “extremist,” while people inside Belarus risk prosecution simply for interacting with them.
It is worth noting that, in preparing the report, the Special Rapporteur drew on a joint submission by PEN Belarus, PEN America, and PEN International. Together with our Belarusian partners — Human Constanta, the Legal Initiative, the Right to Defence Project, and the Belarusian Helsinki Committee — we also submitted an additional report to the Special Rapporteur’s office, providing an in-depth analysis of legislative restrictions, violations of cultural rights, censorship, and the persecution of cultural figures in recent years.
The Special Rapporteur explicitly calls on the Belarusian authorities to end the persecution of cultural figures, guarantee access to books in the Belarusian language, repeal discriminatory legislation, and fully uphold the right to freedom of artistic expression.
This report is significant not only because it documents ongoing violations. It also establishes at the international level that cultural rights are not a secondary issue, but one of the central areas of systematic repression in Belarus. Documenting these violations lays the groundwork for sustained international attention, support for those affected, and efforts to ensure accountability.