A wave of disappointment swept over opposition activists in Belarus last week as the biggest East-West prisoner swap since the Cold War unfolded and they learned it included none of the Belarusian political detainees who’ve been locked up for years by its authoritarian leader.
Find Insider Deals for items perfect around the house and on the goThis photo combination shows Belarus political prisoners, clockwise from top left, Viasna human rights group founder and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski in , Belarus' opposition activist Maria Kolesnikova, journalist Andrzej Poczobut and opposition activist Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya holding a portrait of her jailed husband Syarhey Tsikhanousky.
Viasna has raised the issue with Western diplomats, listing more than 30 political prisoners who need to be released as a priority, according to the group's representative, Pavel Sapelka. “Obviously there was a window of opportunity for freeing Belarusians, because Minsk was involved in the scheme and took part in negotiations with Berlin regarding Krieger,” Khomich told AP. “But Western politicians couldn’t or didn’t want to use that window.”
Kolesnikova was charged with helping organize the mass protests of the Aug. 9, 2020, election that lasted for months. More than 35,000 people were arrested and thousands were beaten. Many opposition figures were convicted and given long prison terms, while others fled abroad. Tsikhanouskaya, who has been lobbying Western leaders against Lukashenko, also expressed disappointment that no Belarusians were freed in the swap.
Pavel Latushka, Belarus’ former culture minister and now an exiled opposition activist, told AP he has written to German lawmakers about Belarus' human rights issues. He was convicted of various anti-government charges in absentia by a Minsk court. But Belarus demanded Latushka’s extradition in exchange for releasing Poczobut, said former Polish Interior Minister Mariusz Kamiński
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