{"id":21418,"date":"2025-12-23T12:11:36","date_gmt":"2025-12-23T12:11:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/penbelarus.org\/?p=21418"},"modified":"2025-12-23T12:24:09","modified_gmt":"2025-12-23T12:24:09","slug":"zayava-ab-pryznanni-valeryya-paznyakevicha-i-yashche-vasmi-chalavek-palitychnymi-znyavolenymi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/penbelarus.org\/en\/2025\/12\/23\/zayava-ab-pryznanni-valeryya-paznyakevicha-i-yashche-vasmi-chalavek-palitychnymi-znyavolenymi.html","title":{"rendered":"The statement on the recognition of Valery Pazniakievi\u010d and eight other people as political prisoners"},"content":{"rendered":"

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

December 22, 2025<\/em><\/p>\n

The Belarusian human rights community notes new cases of convictions and imprisonments of the country’s citizens under several articles of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus related to defamation and desecration of state symbols 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 mentioned in the Joint statement of December 22, 2020<\/a>),\u00a0note the following:<\/strong><\/p>\n

We have received information about the following persons imprisoned for insulting A. Lukashenka and other forms of peaceful exercise of freedom of opinion:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Ihar \u010carpako\u016d, <\/strong>sentenced to imprisonment under Article 368 of the Criminal Code for insulting A. Lukashenka;<\/li>\n
  2. Valery Pazniakievi\u010d<\/a>, <\/strong>sentenced to imprisonment under Article 368 of the Criminal Code for insulting A. Lukashenka;<\/li>\n
  3. Raman Kancavy,<\/strong>\u00a0sentenced to imprisonment under articles 368 and 369 of the Criminal Code for insulting A. Lukashenka and an official;<\/li>\n
  4. Valery Sachar\u010duk,<\/strong>\u00a0sentenced to imprisonment under Article 368 of the Criminal Code for insulting A. Lukashenka;<\/li>\n
  5. U\u0142adzimir Isaje\u016d,<\/strong>\u00a0sentenced to imprisonment under articles 361 and 368 of the Criminal Code for insulting A. Lukashenka and “calling for actions aimed at harming the national security of the Republic of Belarus”;<\/li>\n
  6. Vadzim Sy\u010duho\u016d,<\/strong>\u00a0sentenced to imprisonment under articles 368, 369, and 370 of the Criminal Code for insulting A. Lukashenko and an official and desecrating state symbols;<\/li>\n
  7. Ja\u016dhien Si\u0107ko,<\/strong>\u00a0sentenced to imprisonment under Article 368 of the Criminal Code for insulting A. Lukashenka;<\/li>\n
  8. U\u0142adzimir Leasievi\u010d,<\/strong>\u00a0sentenced to imprisonment under Article 368 of the Criminal Code for insulting A. Lukashenka;<\/li>\n
  9. Dzianis Piatkievi\u010d,<\/strong>\u00a0sentenced to imprisonment under Article 361 of the Criminal Code on the charge of “calling for actions aimed at harming the national security of the Republic of Belarus”.<\/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