Belarusian Nobel Laureate Bialiatski Sentenced To 10 Years In Prison

A Belarusian court has sentenced Ales Bialiatski, Belarus’s top Human Rights advocate and a Nobel Peace Prize winner to 10 years in prison.

Bialiatski and three other top figures of the Viasna Human Rights Centre were charged with financing protests and smuggling money on Friday.

Prosecutors had asked the Minsk court to give Bialiatski, who denied the charges, a 12-year sentence.

Bialiatski who is aged 60 is one of the most prominent Belarusians who were jailed during a crackdown on anti-government protests that erupted after Alexander Lukashenko was declared the winner of the 2020 presidential election.

Many have condemned Friday’s sentencing. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock slammed the charges and proceedings, saying they were being judged “simply for their years-long fight for the rights, dignity and freedom of the people of Belarus”.

Poland’s prime minister also denounced the sentencing. Mateusz Morawiecki said; “Today’s verdict is yet another outrageous decision of a Belarusian court recently.

“The (Belarusian) authorities have repeatedly tried to silence him, but Ales Bialiatski never conceded in his fight for human rights and democracy in Belarus.”