Степан Латыпов в суде 1 июня. Фото: spring96.org
Political prisoner Stsiapan Latypau has attempted suicide for the third time, the human rights center Viasna reports.
According to human rights defenders, in July 2025 he was transferred from Mahilyou Prison No. 4 to Correctional Colony No. 22 “Volchyye Nory,” where he was immediately placed in a punishment cell and then in a cell-type facility. There, Latypau cut his veins, after which he received stitches. It is known that during his imprisonment he had requested solitary confinement.
According to Viasna, there was no electrical outlet in the cell-type facility, and hot water was provided twice a day. Around September 2025, Latypau was transferred back to prison. He reportedly said that he saw no meaning in life and would not endure another term under prison conditions.
Stsiapan Latypau is an arborist and a resident of the “Square of Changes.” He was detained in September 2020, sentenced to 8.5 years in a high-security colony, and fined 300 base units. He was accused of creating a neighborhood Telegram chat, organizing a workshop producing protest symbols, and resisting police officers. Additionally, as director of the company Belarbo, he was found guilty of fraud. He did not admit guilt on any of the charges.
Latypau first attempted suicide in the summer of 2021 in a courtroom by stabbing himself in the neck with a pen. After surgery, he was placed in Pre-Trial Detention Center No. 1.
In the colony, Latypau faced pressure from the administration — he was repeatedly placed in punishment cells and a cell-type facility. In protest, he swallowed a razor blade and again cut his veins. After that, in the autumn of 2022, his detention regime was changed, and he was transferred for two years to Mahilyou Prison No. 4.