Telegram.com/BSDP_HramadaIhar Lednik was convicted of defamation against President Lukashenko
NOS Nieuws•gisteren, 22:46
Another political prisoner has died in Belarus. It concerns the 64-year-old activist and journalist Ihar Lednik. This was reported by the Belarusian party BSDP, of which he was a member. According to the party, Lednik died of cardiac arrest after his health deteriorated significantly in prison.
Lednik was arrested in April 2022. Later that year, he was sentenced to three years in prison in a penal colony for defaming President Lukashenko in the BDSP party magazine.
In the publication, entitled “Internationally recognized neutrality of Belarus is a guarantee of security in the OSCE region,” Lednik accused the president of “particularly serious crimes,” according to the Public Prosecution Service.
Fifth death in two years
Lednik is the fifth political prisoner to die in Belarus in two years, according to human rights organization Viasna. There are currently almost 1,500 political prisoners in the country. Many of them were arrested following the large-scale protests that broke out in 2020 following Lukashenko’s controversial re-election. He has ruled the country with an iron fist since 1994. Contradiction is not tolerated.
Belarusian opposition leader Tikhanovskaya, who lives in exile in Lithuania, calls Lednix’s death “a new tragedy”. She mentions it on Facebook incredibly unjust “that the regime kills Belarusians in prisons who wanted to change life in their country for the better.” She calls on the media, international partners and human rights activists to stand up for political prisoners. According to her, a number of them suffer from serious health problems. “They are fighting for their health and their lives in horrible conditions.”
Russia correspondent Geert Groot Koerkamp:
“Lednik disappeared behind bars in 2022 for criticizing President Lukashenko, while it was well known that he had heart problems.
There are fears that more political prisoners will die, especially as torture in Belarusian prisons is commonplace, according to human rights groups. People are still being arrested for their participation in the mass protests of 2020. Family members of people who are already in custody are also regularly arrested.
At least 70 of Belarus’ 1,500 political prisoners are in poor health, some in critical condition. Dozens of political prisoners are elderly, the oldest of them is 75 years old. And some well-known prisoners, such as Maria Kolesnikova and former presidential candidate Nikolai Statkevich, have not been heard from for more than a year, they are completely isolated from the outside world.”
2024-02-20 21:46:15
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