Фото: Офис Тихановской
What is happening in Belarusian prisons must not be accepted as normal. Everyone who gave and carried out criminal orders must be held accountable. This was stated in a message by Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya marking the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture.
“Today is the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture. And these days, human rights defenders are holding a week against torture. Unfortunately, in Belarus, torture has continued not for weeks, but for years. It has become part of the system, part of the horrific prison experience endured by hundreds of Belarusian men and women every day. And the regime does not keep it secret or hide it behind the walls of penal colonies. When people are released, everyone can see the horrors of torture.
Journalist Kseniya Lutskina was released with a brain tumor that developed while she was imprisoned. Hanna Kandratsenka died of cancer several months after her release. She was diagnosed while still in prison, but authorities refused to grant her early release for treatment. And there are so many such stories, so many people who are afraid to speak about their experiences, and so many who still cannot recover from the horrors of the penal colonies.
And now the regime is trying to reach even those outside Belarus. Trials in absentia, property confiscation, pressure on relatives. Transnational repression has become a continuation of the same system of violence.
Not only this week, but always, we must name the victims, tell their stories, support them, and collect evidence of torture and other crimes committed by the regime.
What is happening in Belarusian prisons must not be accepted as normal. We must remember this and ensure that everyone who gave and carried out criminal orders is held accountable,” she said.