Sentenced in his absence.
A Belarusian court sentenced the main opponent, Svetlana Tikhanovskaïa, to 15 years in prison on Monday March 6, who lives in exile in a context of fierce repression orchestrated by the regime of Alexander Lukashenko.
According to the state news agency Belta and the human rights organization Viasna, another opponent, Pavel Latouchko, was sentenced to 18 years in prison.
During this trial described as a "farce" by Svetlana Tikhanovskaïa, the two opponents were notably accused of "conspiracy to seize power unconstitutionally".
The opponent reacted to the sentence by swearing to continue her struggle and her political activities.
15 years of prison.
This is how the regime “rewarded” my work for democratic changes in Belarus.
But today I don't think about my own sentence.
I think about thousands of innocents, detained & sentenced to real prison terms.
I won't stop until each of them is released.
pic.twitter.com/9kQREV0sgl
— Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya (@Tsihanouskaya) March 6, 2023
"Today, I'm not thinking of my own sentence. I'm thinking of thousands of innocent people, detainees and people sentenced to real prison terms," she reacted on Twitter.
"I won't stop until each one of them is freed," she promised.
>> Svetlana Tikhanovskaya: "Belarusians have the right to decide the future of their country"
During this trial, which took place in an opaque manner, Svetlana Tikhanovskaïa was targeted by a dozen charges, in particular that of "conspiracy to seize power unconstitutionally".
Last week, the prosecution requested 19 years in prison against the 40-year-old opponent and refugee in Lithuania.
The conviction of Svetlana Tikhanovskaïa and the four other opponents is part of a context of accelerated repression in Belarus, a former Soviet republic ruled with an iron fist for three decades by Alexander Lukashenko.
On Friday, activist Ales Bialiatski, co-winner of the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize and figure of the democracy movement in Belarus, was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Unlike Svetlana Tikhanovskaïa, he is still in Belarus, where he has been imprisoned since 2021.
"Prank call"
In an interview with AFP in January, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya called her trial a "farce" and "personal revenge" by Alexander Lukashenko against the one who shook his power in 2020.
This crackdown follows a historic protest movement in 2020 which erupted after the controversial re-election of Alexander Lukashenko in a ballot marred by massive fraud, according to observers.
These protest actions were put down with thousands of arrests, cases of torture, the death of several demonstrators, heavy sentences and forced exiles.
Svetlana Tikhanovskaïa, who had run for president in 2020 in place of her imprisoned husband Sergei Tikhanovski, had, during the campaign, gathered crowds across her country, raising hopes for change.
Forced into exile, the one who once presented herself as a simple stay-at-home mother is now the face of democratic forces in Belarus and the enemy of a regime whose brutal abuses she tirelessly denounces.
The husband of Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, a popular blogger who fiercely criticized Alexander Lukashenko, was sentenced in December 2021 to 18 years in prison, in particular for "organizing massive unrest" and "inciting hatred in society".
According to the NGO Viasna, Belarus had 1,461 political prisoners as of March 1.
Westerners have taken several rounds of sanctions against Minsk for the crackdown on the 2020 protests, but the regime still enjoys Moscow's unwavering support.
Belarus has agreed in return to serve as a rear base for Russian troops to attack Ukraine in February 2022. But the Belarusian army has not taken a direct part in the fighting so far.
With AFP
The summary of the
France 24 week invites you to come back to the news that marked the week
I subscribe
Take international news everywhere with you!
Download the France 24 app