{"id":17982,"date":"2024-12-24T14:56:35","date_gmt":"2024-12-24T14:56:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/penbelarus.org\/?p=17982"},"modified":"2024-12-27T15:03:22","modified_gmt":"2024-12-27T15:03:22","slug":"zayava-ab-pryznanni-13-chalavek-palitychnymi-znyavolenymi-4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/penbelarus.org\/en\/2024\/12\/24\/zayava-ab-pryznanni-13-chalavek-palitychnymi-znyavolenymi-4.html","title":{"rendered":"The statement on the recognition of 13 people as political prisoners"},"content":{"rendered":"

Joint statement by the Belarusian human rights community<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

December 24, 2024<\/em><\/p>\n

The Belarusian human rights community notes an increase in the number of convictions and imprisonments under several defamation and desecration of state symbols articles of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus, and for other actions aimed at the lawful exercise of the freedom of expression.<\/p>\n

We demand to put an end to the persecution of legitimate expression of views and, reaffirming our repeated calls to decriminalize defamation and to refrain from imposing custodial sentences for insulting officials, the state, government agencies, and symbols (as\u00a0mentioned<\/a>\u00a0in the Joint statement of December 22, 2020),\u00a0note the following<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

We have received information about the following persons put in custody and imprisoned for insulting A. Lukashenka, government officials (police officers), judges and insulting the state and state symbols, other forms of freedom of expression:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Arciom Jankin<\/strong> under Article 368 of the Criminal Code for insulting A. Lukashenka; he was sentenced to three months of imprisonment in a penal colony;<\/li>\n
  2. Alaksandr Kireje\u016d<\/strong> under Article 368 of the Criminal Code for insulting A. Lukashenka; he was sentenced to one year in a penal colony;<\/li>\n
  3. Dzmitry Bie\u0142anovi\u010d<\/strong> under Articles 368 and 369 of the Criminal Code for insulting A. Lukashenka and a representative of the authorities; he was sentenced to imprisonment in a penal colony;<\/li>\n
  4. Ja\u016dhien Ano\u0161yn<\/strong> under Article 368 of the Criminal Code for insulting A. Lukashenka; he was sentenced to one year and six months of imprisonment in a penal colony;<\/li>\n
  5. Maksim Mysliviec<\/strong> under Article 361 of the Criminal Code for calls for actions aimed at harming the national security of the Republic of Belarus (sanctions); he was sentenced to imprisonment in a penal colony;<\/li>\n
  6. Michai\u0142 Hierasim\u010dyk<\/strong> under Article 368 of the Criminal Code for insulting A. Lukashenka; he was sentenced to one year and six months of imprisonment in a penal colony;<\/li>\n
  7. Jury Bialkievi\u010d<\/strong> under Articles 342 and 368 of the Criminal Code for organizing and preparing actions that grossly violate public order, or actively participating in them, and insulting A. Lukashenka; she was sentenced to imprisonment in a penal colony;<\/li>\n
  8. Dzmitry Son\u010dyk<\/strong> under Articles 391, 368, and 369 of the Criminal Code for insulting a judge, A. Lukashenka, and a representative of the authorities; he was sentenced to imprisonment in a penal colony;<\/li>\n
  9. Mika\u0142aj Dziem\u010danka<\/strong>\u00a0under Article 367 of the Criminal Code for defamation of A. Lukashenka; he was sentenced to imprisonment in a penal colony;<\/li>\n
  10. Alena Kijani\u010denka<\/strong> under Articles 369 and 368 of the Criminal Code for insulting a representative of the authorities and A. Lukashenka; she was sentenced to imprisonment in a penal colony;<\/li>\n
  11. Andrej Kunicki<\/strong> under Article 368 of the Criminal Code for insulting A. Lukashenka; he was sentenced to imprisonment in a high-security penal colony;<\/li>\n
  12. Siarhiej Miadzviedzie\u016d<\/strong> under Articles 368 and 369 of the Criminal Code for insulting A. Lukashenka and a representative of the authorities; he was sentenced to restriction of freedom in an open-type correctional institution and sent to a correctional institution;<\/li>\n
  13. Tamara Patockaja<\/strong> was placed in custody under Articles 361 and 342 of the Criminal Code for calling for actions aimed at harming the national security of the Republic of Belarus (sanctions), and for organizing and preparing actions that grossly violate public order, or actively participating in them,<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    We consider the persecution and imprisonment of the named individuals to be politically motivated, related to the peaceful exercise of expressing thoughts, and consider them\u00a0political prisoners<\/strong>\u00a0in accordance with paragraph 3.1(a) of the\u00a0Guidelines on the Definition of Political Prisoners<\/a>. We demand from the Belarusian authorities:<\/p>\n