On 12 January, we mark four years since the arrest and imprisonment of our former colleague Andrei Aliaksandrau in Belarus. ARTICLE 19 reiterates our call for the journalist and human rights defender’s immediate release and for Belarusian authorities to drop the baseless charges against him.
Andrei was detained on 12 January 2021 for allegedly paying fines and covering detention costs for people apprehended during democracy protests in Minsk. He was initially charged with the ‘organisation and preparation of actions, grossly violating public order, or active participation in them’, as well as ‘funding and other material support for such activities’. After spending over 620 days behind bars, he was unjustly sentenced in October 2022, with the charge of ‘high treason’ added to his sentence. On 6 October 2022, the Minsk Regional Court sentenced Andrei to 14 years in prison.
‘Andrei is a passionate advocate for press freedom, and has worked as a journalist and for freedom of expression organisations including ARTICLE 19’, said Joanna Szymanska, Senior Programme Officer for Europe and Central Asia at ARTICLE 19. ‘We continue to write to him – even though we suspect the authorities do not allow our letters to reach him, it is important to ensure they know we will not stop raising his case on the international stage. Our thoughts are always with Andrei and we continue to work for his freedom.’
As of 8 January, according to the Viasna human rights organisation, there are 1258 political prisoners currently being held in Belarus.
Background
On 9 August 2020, soon after the polls closed in Minsk, thousands of Belarusians took to the streets to defy President Alexander Lukashenko’s declaration of victory in the election, which had been marred by accusations of vote-rigging. In retaliation, the state apparatus unleashed a harsh crackdown on peaceful protesters that intensified and led to a massive exodus with people seeking refuge in neighbouring countries. More than 30,000 individuals were arrested and persecuted, along with scores of journalists and human rights activists. Andrei Aliaksandrau is among the many people who have been handed down harsh prison sentences based on trumped-up charges.
Please join us in calling for Andrei’s release, using the hashtag #FreeAndrei.
Read more about ARTICLE 19’s advocacy work to free political prisoners and support freedom of expression in Belarus.