💔 5 years and 5 months ago, Marfa Rabkova was arrested in #Belarus As a coordinator of Vasna's Volunteer Service, she organized the documentation of political repression and supported victims of state violence. For that, the Belarusian authorities sentenced her to nearly 15 years in prison.

❗ Forced labor of prisoners in #Belarus is used to support Russia’s war industry. According to an investigation by BelPol, penal colony No. 9 — where Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski also served his sentence — produces components for the Sosna-U sight used in Russian tanks.

💔 Valiantsin Stefanovic remains behind bars in #Belarus It has been 4 years and 7 months since the arrest of Valiantsin Stefanovic, deputy head of Viasna. He was sentenced to 9 years in prison for his peaceful human rights work. Our colleague deserves respect, not imprisonment! #FreeViasna

❓How a Nobel Peace Prize laureate was treated in a Belarusian prison Head of Viasna, Ales Bialiatski, spoke in an interview with @rferl.org.web.brid.gy about the conditions of detention in punitive isolation cells. He was placed there repeatedly and spent a total of 38 days in such conditions.

Ales Bialiatski took part in the events of the Norwegian Parliament The meetings were constructive and took place in a cordial atmosphere, with the main focus on the human rights situation in #Belarus. More 👉 spring96.org/en/news/119586

❗Viasna has identified at least 175 confirmed defendants in the Belaruski Hajun case. The actual number is likely higher, but the full extent remains unclear due to the Lukashenka regime's efforts to conceal the scale of repression. More details: spring96.org/en/news/119568

Alla Sokolenko, a Latvian citizen, traveled to #Belarus for a short visit to have cosmetic surgery. She was detained as she was preparing to leave and was accused of espionage. After more than three years in detention, Alla was released on December 13, 2025. Photo by Māris Morkāns

🤷‍♀️ Year of the Belarusian Woman: Formality and Reality #womenrights #noexcuse #politicalprisoners #Belarus

🥶 Today in Homiel, it is -25°C. What does this mean for female political prisoners? A former political prisoner, with tears in her eyes, tells Viasna that during the current severe cold and snow, she often thinks about those still in Homieĺ Penal colony No. 4 spring96.org/en/news/119534

Head of Viasna and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski spoke in an interview with TV RAIN about the inhumane conditions in Belarusian prisons, Lukashenka’s dependence on Putin, his views on the war, and what the Belarusian authorities still fear.

How do human rights organizations operate when human rights work itself is criminalized? ⚖️ Pavel Sapelka from Human Rights Center Viasna explains how torture, arbitrary detention, and systemic repression in Belarus are documented from exile under constant pressure. dignity.dk/en/news/docu...

❗ The website of #FreeViasna campaign has been declared “extremist” in #Belarus Our website, freeviasna.org, tells the stories of imprisoned human rights defenders from Viasna Human Rights Center who have been persecuted for their professional activities.

❗Today, there are +14 political prisoners in Belarus There are 1158 political prisoners in total. ❓Who are these people and why do human rights defenders consider their cases politically motivated - spring96.org/en/news/119477

We are delighted to have welcomed our colleague Ales Bialiatski to our Oslo office to discuss the human rights situation in Belarus and to reconnect after his spending more than four and a half years as a political prisoner in Belarus. @freeviasna.org

💔 5 years and 4 months ago, a brave human rights defender, Marfa Rabkova, was arrested in #Belarus Marfa dedicated her life to others. As a coordinator of Viasna Volunteer Service, she organized the documentation of political repression and supported victims of state violence. #FreeMarfa

📢 Viasna human rights defender Uladzimir Labkovich spoke to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty about the situation of political prisoners in #Belarus He emphasized the urgent need for continued attention and solidarity with #politicalprisoners. #FreeThemAll

❗ Today, there are +5 political prisoners in Belarus There are 1146 political prisoners in total. Full list - prisoners.spring96.org #FreeThemAll

📊 #Belarus: Human rights situation in 2025 Viasna has prepared their annual review of the human rights situation in Belarus. The conclusion remains unchanged: the situation remains extremely grave.

Valiantsin Stefanovich has been behind bars for four and a half years. He was detained on 14 July 2021 alongside Ales Bialiatski & Uladzimir Labkovich, who were both released on 13 December 2025. We repeat our call for his release and all political prisoners in #Belarus. @freeviasna.org

💔 Valiantsin Stefanovic has now spent 4 years and 6 months in prison He was sentenced to 9 years in prison for his peaceful professional human rights work. While his colleagues Ales Bialiatski and Uladzimir Labkovich were released, Valiantsin Stefanovic remains unjustly behind bars in #Belarus.

✊ "The world must stop the rivers of blood that have flooded the streets of Iranian cities!" Head of Viasna Ales Bialiatski expressed his support for the protesters in #Iran and called on international organizations to make every effort to stop the violence carried out by the Iranian regime.

Maryna Zolatava is the editor-in-chief of TUT.BY, which was dismantled by the Belarusian regime. She was detained in May 2021 and sentenced to 12 years in prison for her professional journalistic work. On December 13, 2025, Maryna was released as part of a group of 123 political prisoners.

Human rights defender Uladz Labkovich was held behind bars for four and a half years that was a bigger part of his term he was sentenced to in the Viasna case. On December 13, he unexpectedly found himself among 123 pardoned political prisoners who were forcibly deported from #Belarus.

✊Founder of Viasna and #NobelPeacePrize laureate Ales Bialiatski wrote a column for @nytopinion.nytimes.com "We must find new ways to build solidarity across borders because of the scale of the challenges facing the Belarusian people." www.nytimes.com/2026/01/07/o...

🎉 "I'm confident that we will celebrate the next birthday together with you in freedom" The head of Viasna and #NobelPeacePrize laureate Ales Bialiatski congratulated human rights defenders Marfa Rabkova and Nasta Loika on their birthdays. Today, Marfa and Nasta are in a penal colony in #Belarus.

💔 The sixth birthday behind bars Today is the birthday of Marfa Rabkova. She turns 31 years old. It is extremely difficult and unbearably painful to realize that this is already the sixth birthday our brave Marfa is spending not with her family and friends, but behind bars. #FreeMarfa

❗ #Belarus: 67 “extremist groups” in 2025 Among them are independent media, educational initiatives, civil society organizations, websites for petitions and crowdfunding. In total, the Belarusian regime has designated 324 entities as so-called “extremist formations”. 🔗 spring96.org/en/news/119385

❗️At least 1,254 people convicted in 2025: the results of criminal prosecution The most frequently used charge in politically motivated trials remains participation in protest actions. Under Article 342 of the Criminal Code, at least 643 people were convicted in 2025. spring96.org/en/news/119372

⚡️Another 22 people have been pardoned in #Belarus It is reported that among them are 15 women and 7 men. Of this number, 20 people were convicted of so-called “extremist-related” offenses. It is claimed that all of them submitted petitions for a pardon to Lukashenka. #FreeThemAll

🤔 What does it mean when a human rights defender is in prison? The head of @viasna96 and #NobelPeacePrize laureate Ales Bialiatski shared his perspective in a major interview with TOK.

Ales Bialiatski for The New York Times: “What is the sense in releasing some if they are gathering others?” Head of Viasna and #NobelPeacePrize laureate said the sanctions had been a “powerful lever” because they had so damaged Belarus’s economy.

❗ Viasna reports in numbers what the year 2025 was like for political prisoners in Belarus Belarusians will remember warm hugs with political prisoners after their release, meetings with those who had not been heard from for several years, and the first words spoken in freedom.

❗ Today, there are +10 political prisoners in Belarus There are 1135 political prisoners in total. prisoners.spring96.org/en #FreeThemAll

🚫 HRDs call to stop the practice of forcibly deporting political prisoners after their release Released political prisoners who were forcibly taken outside #Belarus have effectively found themselves in a situation of forced exile and have been deprived of the possibility to return home.

✊ Viasna lawyer Uladzimir Labkovich, speaking at a press conference in Vilnius, emphasized the importance of collecting evidence of crimes committed by the Lukashenka regime against ordinary people and called for documenting cases of torture in Belarusian prisons.

Special Rapporteur Nils Muiznieks welcomed the recent releases of prisoners convicted in relation to protests around the 2020 presidential elections but cautioned against excessive optimism about the human rights situation in #Belarus. Read: www.ohchr.org/en/press-rel...

✊ Ales Bialiatski and Uladzimir Labkovich met in Vilnius. They were sentenced to 10 and 7 years respectively. Both were released on December 13 and deported from #Belarus among 123 political prisoners.

⚡️The President of Lithuania met with Ales Bialiatski Today Gitanas Nauseda met with Viasna chairman, and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski. “Your resilience, moral strength, and unwavering commitment to human dignity — even in the darkest of times — inspire us all,” the President said.

✊ Viasna lawyer Uladzimir Labkovich took part in a press conference. He is currently in Ukraine. Belarusian security forces confiscated his passport, as well as the passports of other released prisoners.

📸 Ales Bialiatski next to a mural created in his honor in Vilnius in 2022 with the support of the Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Photo: Nasha Niva

💔 Unfortunately, Valiantsin Stefanovic, Viasna's board member and former Vice President of FIDH, remains imprisoned in #Belarus He was on the list for release but was not freed. “My colleague, Valiantsin Stefanovic, remains behind bars despite the fact that I was released,” said Ales Bialiatski.

📸 Ales Bialiatski during a meeting with journalists and Belarusians in #Vilnius #FreeThemAll

💔Unfortunately, the release of Valiantsin Stefanovic has not been confirmed. He was on the list for release, but it is not yet clear whether he has been freed. The information is being verified.

⚡️ Uladzimir Labkovich is free! ⚡️ He spent over 4 years in prison in #Belarus. A coordinator of the Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections campaign, he was convicted for his peaceful #humanrights work.

❗️123 people, including political prisoners, were pardoned in Belarus on December 13. Almost of them were forcibly deported to the territory of #Ukraine. spring96.org/en/news/119263

⚡️Valiantsin Stefanovic is free! ⚡️ The former vice-president of FIDH - International Federation for Human Rights spent over 4 years in prison for his peaceful work. In detention, he faced pressure and was recently transferred to a harsher prison regime in Mahilioŭ.

⚡️ Ales Bialiatski is free! ⚡️ The #NobelPeacePrize laureate and founder of Viasna spent over 4 years behind bars for his peaceful human rights work. Belarusian authorities had already imprisoned him once before — he then served almost 3 years. #FreeViasna #FreeAles #FreeThemAll

#NoExcuse: Lack of access to hygiene products in detention is violence too Many women report to human rights defenders a shortage of hygiene products, bans on parcels, or the inability to purchase necessities in the prison store.

#NoExcuse: A trial for words is violence too In Belarus, at least 530 women have faced criminal prosecution for expressing opinions about Lukashenka, officials, or security forces. Sixty-eight of them remain behind bars today.