On Tuesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced visa restrictions on 25 Belarusians over the “politically motivated trial in absentia of democratic opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya” and others, calling the charges “baseless.”
Blinken pointed out that the restrictions target members of the Belarusian National Assembly who had passed legislation to “authorise the death penalty for persons convicted of supposed ‘attempted acts of terrorism,’” revoking citizenship for individuals based out of the country for “extremism,” and supporting the confiscation of property for taking “unfriendly actions towards Belarus.”
The Lukashenka regime's politically motivated trial in absentia of democratic opposition leader Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya is illustrative of its repression. We've taken steps to impose visa restrictions on 25 regime officials who passed legislation to repress pro-democracy actors.
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) January 17, 2023
Tsikhanouskaya’s Trial
On Tuesday, Belarus began a trial in absentia against opposition leader Tsikhanouskaya and her four other allies — Maria Moroz, Pavel Latushko, Olga Kovalkova, and Sergei Dylevsky — on charges of high treason, “conspiracy to seize power,” and establishing and leading a radical organisation.
Belarus’ General Prosecutor’s Office claimed that the trial against the opposition leader and other democracy activists was based on them trying to seize power, since “Tsikhanouskaya, while on the territory of the Republic of Lithuania, proclaimed herself the winner of the last election... and the only national leader elected by the Belarusian people.”
Currently based out of Vilnius, Tsikhanouskaya faces 20 years of imprisonment if convicted.
By further ceding Belarus' sovereignty to Putin & supporting war on Ukraine, the Lukashenka regime reinforces its status as a global pariah.
— Senate Foreign Relations Committee (@SFRCdems) January 18, 2023
I stand in steadfast support of @Tsihanouskaya as her show trial begins & with democratic Belarus in resisting Putin's insidious influence. https://t.co/i7izUViX9F
Tsikhanouskaya Denounces Trial
Speaking on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos on Monday, Tsikhanouskaya called the trial “a farce and a show, but not real justice.” “In Belarus, there are no honest trials. We live in absolute lawlessness in our country,” she asserted.
She ran for office in 2020 after her husband, Syarhei Tsikhanouski, was arrested the same year for contesting the elections against President Alexander Lukashenko.
On Monday, Belarus added new charges against Tsikhanouski for “provoking conflicts” in prison, including with his fellow prisoners, and for methodically refusing to obey orders. He is already serving 18 years imprisonment after being convicted in December 2021, and this could result in an additional two-year prison sentence for him.
The trial against me starts today in Minsk. I am charged with 10+ crimes. Does it change anything for me? Nothing. It is just the revenge of a pathetic dictator who lost power & tries to take revenge on all who stood up for freedom. Belarus needs real justice, not a puppet show. pic.twitter.com/6K5Au4opBU
— Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya (@Tsihanouskaya) January 17, 2023
Tsikhanouskaya and other opposition leaders rejected Lukashenko’s sixth election victory, calling it election fraud. She later fled the country in 2020, which led to months-long mass protests. The Lukashenko administration suppressed the protests by arresting over 35,000 and violently beating thousands.
According to human rights activists, Belarus has about 1,500 political prisoners.