Belarusian PEN has published a new analytical report summarizing the state of Belarusian culture in the first quarter of 2026.
In Belarus, the politically motivated persecution of cultural figures, the criminalization of cultural activities in general, and literary work in particular continue. The release of another group of political prisoners, made possible through the mediation of the U.S. government in negotiations with the Lukashenka regime, took place against the backdrop of new arrests.
Among the high-profile repressions in the cultural sphere was unprecedented pressure on independent publishers and book distributors: detentions, interrogations, administrative arrests, and criminal prosecution; the suspension of the activities of the Minsk-based publishing house “Tekhnalogiya”; and the designation as “extremist formations” of the Kamunikat.org foundation, as well as the publishing houses “Gutenberg Publisher”, “Lohvinau”, and “Januskevic”, which legally publish Belarusian books abroad.
A number of other major cultural initiatives faced a similar fate. Among those designated as “extremist formations” was Belarusian PEN, the country’s oldest human rights organization uniting writers.
Criminal prosecution and administrative pressure affected a wide range of cultural representatives: the sentencing of Aleh Khamenka — musician, composer, and leader of the folk-modern band “Palac” — to three years in a penal colony for producing music radio programs; detentions at the Minsk cultural space “Parason”; administrative prosecution for participation in the traditional Belarusian rite of Hukanne Viasny; the appearance of new names on performer blacklists; and a wave of cancellations of major annual music festivals.
The nationalization of private business in the culture and entertainment sector continued: the trademarks of Kvitki.by, the country’s largest ticket sales service, forcibly liquidated in September 2025, were transferred to the state-owned enterprise “Belarusian Lotteries”, which is part of the Presidential Property Management Directorate.
Threats and intimidation by security structures over Belarusians in exile marking Freedom Day, as well as other forms of transnational persecution, were also recorded.
A total of 335 violations of cultural rights and human rights against cultural figures were documented.
As of March 31, 2026, there were 911 political prisoners in the country, including at least 63 cultural figures (about 7% of the total number of political prisoners).
Overall, at least 128 representatives of the cultural sphere are imprisoned on politically motivated grounds in penal colonies, prisons, pretrial detention centers, open-type correctional facilities (“chemistry”), or serving sentences under “home chemistry”. Among them are 47 women. Twenty-five writers and other people of letters are either behind bars or subjected to restrictions on freedom.
The most common form of repression during the reporting period was the designation of cultural materials and social media accounts of cultural figures as “extremist materials” (94 cases). Censorship ranked second (51 cases, including additions to the list of printed publications banned from distribution in Belarus). Violations of the right to a fair trial and access to justice ranked third (33 cases). They were followed by arbitrary detentions of cultural figures and their designation as “participants in extremist formations” (24 cases each).
At least 23 cultural figures were subjected to arbitrary detention or arrest (one artist was detained twice). Administrative prosecution against 10 individuals is known, with 18 administrative protocols filed. At least 10 representatives of the sector were prosecuted under criminal law; in seven of those cases, the charges included Article 361-4 of the Criminal Code for allegedly “facilitating extremist activities”.
Five representatives of the sector were forcibly expelled or deported from the country.
Eleven cultural figures were added to the “List of Citizens Involved in Extremist Activities”. At least 24 people were added to the list of individuals allegedly participating in “extremist formations”.
By decision of the Minsk City Executive Committee, three cultural and educational institutions were liquidated.
The Ministry of Information added four books, including one children’s book, to the “Republican List of Extremist Materials”. The list of printed publications whose distribution is considered “capable of harming national security” was expanded by 16 titles.
Read the monitoring report in full.
