Фото: t.me/Koord_shtab
Belarusian human rights defenders have issued a statement regarding the expulsion from Belarus of released political prisoners. They welcome the steps taken by the Belarusian authorities to release 175 people. At the same time, the human rights defenders express serious concern about how these releases are being carried out.
“We welcome the release of 175 people (52 on 11 September 2025 and 123 on 13 December 2025), of whom 163 had previously been convicted in violation of legal standards as a result of politically motivated persecution, as well as other releases that took place earlier (in particular, on 21 June 2025). We hope that such releases will continue and continue to call on the Belarusian authorities to show foresight in overcoming the humanitarian crisis that has developed in the country.
At the same time, we express serious concern about how exactly these releases are being implemented. Released individuals are subjected to forced transfers to the borders of neighboring states, namely the Belarusian-Lithuanian and Belarusian-Ukrainian borders. Some of those released reported that the transfers took place with bags over their heads and in handcuffs. All of this was carried out in violation of basic procedural guarantees of liberty, without ensuring the possibility of legal protection, including access to necessary documents and legal assistance.
In addition, the transfer of people to the territory of Ukraine, a state in a situation of armed conflict, in close proximity to the combat zone, represents an additional aggravating factor of serious physical danger and deep psychological trauma for people who have spent a long time in places of detention under inhumane conditions and, as a result, are already in an especially vulnerable position.
Released individuals who are forcibly taken outside the Republic of Belarus effectively find themselves in a situation of forced exile and are deprived of the opportunity to return to their homeland. Some of them have been deprived of passports. Such actions by the Belarusian authorities directly violate both national legislation and Belarus’s international obligations and make even more vulnerable the situation of people who have already suffered unjust punishment. According to reports by the Belarusian authorities, they were pardoned and released from punishment. As there are no indications of a pardon by replacing the punishment with a more lenient one, this means that all these people should be free. Forced expulsion, carried out in fact under escort directly from places of detention, primarily violates their right to personal liberty (Article 25 of the Constitution, Article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights), as well as freedom of movement (Article 30 of the Constitution, Article 12(4) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights). Citizens and persons equated to them have the right to freely stay on the territory of Belarus, as well as to leave and return to it.
With regard to the forced removal of released individuals to Ukraine, as a result of the deliberate creation of an additional situation of danger to life and health, one can speak, at a minimum, of a violation of the right to life (Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights), since the obligation to respect and ensure the right to life extends to reasonably foreseeable threats and life-threatening situations that may lead to the death of people.
We draw attention to the fact that, in accordance with Article 7(1)(d) of the Statute of the International Criminal Court, such actions by the authorities, carried out as part of state policy on a large scale or systematically, may be qualified as a crime against humanity in the form of deportation. Each subsequent expulsion only strengthens such qualification, confirming the elements of deportation as a crime against humanity.
Such forced expulsion of released political prisoners deprives them, fully or partially, of a whole range of other basic rights without which normal life is impossible. In particular, rights related to family relations, property, housing, labor rights, the right to health, the right to social security and other rights are violated.
In this regard, we call on the authorities of the Republic of Belarus to:
We call on representatives of international organizations and foreign states, including those involved in negotiations on releases, to:
The statement was adopted by the following organizations: