Self-proclaimed President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko has signed a decree releasing 15 convicts, including eight political prisoners. This was reported by Radio Liberty with reference to Lukashenka's press service , UNN reports.
Details
On January 24, Lukashenko reportedly signed a decree releasing 15 prisoners, including eight imprisoned police officers: five women and three men. Five of them have children, and one woman is pregnant, Lukashenko's press service reported.
Another seven people (including three women) convicted of drug trafficking were also pardoned. Six of them committed crimes when they were minors.
Over the past year, Lukashenko has pardoned 293 people, including 89 women and 17 people who committed crimes when they were minors.
However, there are still 1,254 political prisoners in Belarus recognized by the human rights community, but their actual number may be higher.
According to media reports, from the summer of 2020 to the end of November 2024, the human rights community recognized 3,638 people, including 669 women, as political prisoners. Many of them have already been released, having served their sentences in full.
In addition, people in Belarus continue to be detained, arrested and tried on politically motivated charges; people are tried on both administrative and criminal charges, including imprisonment.
Repression has reportedly intensified across Belarus following the announcement of the dates of the presidential election.
To recap
Earlier, UNN wrote that Belarus did not invite OSCE observers to the January 26 presidential election. The OSCE regretted the inability to conduct an independent assessment of the election process.