Belarusian Nobel Laureate Bale Should Be Released in Prisoner Swap, Supporters Say
VILNIUS: Supporters of jailed Belarusian Nobel Peace Prize laureate Alessi Bialiatskiy say the human rights activist should be included in the biggest East-West prisoner exchange since the Cold War on Thursday.
Allies of Bialiatski and other imprisoned Belarusians are disappointed they were not included in the exchange program that swapped eight Russians, including a convicted murderer, for 16 inmates in Russian and Belarusian prisons, many of whom are political dissidents.
Some of the Russian anti-government activists released in the exchange, including opposition activist Ilya Yashin, expressed anger or reservation on Friday about being involuntarily deported.
Bialiatski, 61, who is serving a 10-year prison sentence for funding anti-government protests after a 2023 trial that was condemned by the United States and European Union as a “sham”, will be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2022, a year after his arrest.
“When we heard that such an agreement was coming soon, we certainly hoped that someone from Belarusian political prisoners would be involved, first of all, a Nobel Peace Prize winner,” said Alena Masliukova, a member of Viasna, a human rights organization founded by Bialiatski.
“This is a complete disappointment and we haven’t gotten over it yet,” said Masliukova, who now lives in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius.
Among those freed to share their opinions this week was German citizen Rico Krieger, who was sentenced to death on terrorism charges in Belarus, a close ally of Russia. According to Viasna, 1,390 people are detained for political reasons, many linked to the mass protests four years ago.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, in office since 1994, has faced massive protests following a disputed 2020 presidential election that posed the biggest challenge to his rule.
He has long denied allegations of human rights abuses.
Viasna said activists were still being tried for their role in the protests, and Masliukova said political prisoners faced harsh conditions in prison.
“They are locked in freezing cells with no contact with their relatives. They leave prison in poor health,” she said.
Bialiatski voluntarily returned from exile in Belarus in 2021 despite knowing he could be arrested, which supporters say means he may be reluctant to leave the country again, a process that requires prisoners to seek pardon under the law.
“I know his character and I am sure he will never ask Lukashenko for forgiveness,” said longtime friend Sergey Sis. “I don’t know what will happen in the next five years… It depends on his health.”
