Exiled Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya expressed concerns on Monday about the potential implications of the death of Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny while in a Russian prison. Tsikhanouskaya warned that Navalny’s death could embolden authoritarian regimes to target other political prisoners, creating a dangerous precedent.
Having fled to Lithuania in 2020 following a contentious election against Alexander Lukashenko, Tsikhanouskaya shared that Navalny’s passing was particularly impactful due to her personal circumstances. Her husband, Siarhei, a vocal critic of the government, was arrested in May 2020 after declaring his candidacy against Lukashenko, and the family has since been deprived of information about his well-being.
“In the last year, he has been kept in incommunicado mode,” Tsikhanouskaya revealed in an interview with Reuters during the United Nations Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva. “It means that I don’t know anything about him. I don’t know if he’s alive, what his health is… Letters are not delivered, I hear my children every day asking when they are going to see their daddy because it’s so painful.”
Fearing that Navalny’s murder could serve as a signal for further violence against political detainees, Tsikhanouskaya urged for a strong international response to secure the release of such prisoners. The Kremlin has refuted allegations linking Navalny’s death to state involvement, dismissing the accusations as unacceptable.
Following the disputed 2020 election in Belarus, citizens engaged in widespread protests against what they believed to be a rigged outcome. President Lukashenko, in power since 1994 and a close ally of Russian leader Vladimir Putin, has staunchly denied accusations of electoral fraud. The aftermath of the protests saw a crackdown on dissent through mass arrests and detentions.
Tsikhanouskaya drew parallels between the current situation in Belarus and the oppressive conditions of Stalin-era labour camps, emphasizing the atmosphere of fear and surveillance that permeates the country. People are reportedly being detained for trivial reasons such as wearing specific colors or expressing support for the families of political prisoners.
In response to the recent parliamentary and local council elections in Belarus, which the United States criticized as fraudulent, Tsikhanouskaya denounced the process as a mere facade lacking genuine democratic elements. She characterized the elections as a formality rather than a legitimate exercise of democracy.
Despite international condemnation and skepticism over the electoral process, Belarus’s top election official rejected criticism from the US and advised them to focus on their own internal affairs. The situation in Belarus continues to be a matter of concern for human rights advocates and democratic countries around the world.
As Tsikhanouskaya continues to advocate for the release of political prisoners and the restoration of democratic rights in Belarus, the environment of fear and repression in the country remains a pressing issue that requires sustained attention and support from the international community.
(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Philippa Fletcher)
