On June 21, former presidential candidate and popular blogger Siarhei Tsikhanouski and 13 other Belarusian political prisoners were released following US mediation. The day after his release, he spoke about his political convictions at a press conference in Vilnius, Lithuania, with his wife, Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya.
Tsikhanouski told journalists that he can hardly believe he is free and he may not have survived if he’d had to spend 20 years in prison.
In 2021, the entrepreneur and blogger was sentenced to 18 years in a penal colony during a court trial held behind closed doors. Investigators accused the activist of organizing street protests in Belarus.
Known for his Telegram channel, “The Country for Life,” Tsikhanouski had announced in May 2020 that he would run for president in the election on August 9, but was not allowed to do so. His wife ran instead.
Tsikhanouski was detained in Grodno on May 29, 2020, during a campaign event in support of his wife.
Held under the harshest prison conditions, Tsikhanouski said he was unable to see lawyers or priests. “For five years, I wasn’t able to confess once,” he said. “Not a single visit to the prison store to at least buy soap or a toothbrush. Other prisoners had to get them for me with great difficulty.”
Political prisoners treated worse than murderers, Tsikhanouski says
As a political prisoner, Tsikhanouski had to clean his single cell four times a day. “What’s there to scrub?” Tsikhanouski said through tears. “Everything is clean. But the guards checked the dust with their fingers — and sent me back to the punishment cell. The rapists and murderers sitting next door have televisions, they have everything, but we are not allowed anything. Human rights also apply to prisoners.”
Tsikhanouski said former presidential contender Viktor Babariko and opposition leader Maria Kolesnikova were being held in equally terrible conditions, a fact he gleaned from secret service agents.
In August 2024, Tsikhanouski first heard that preparations were underway for the release of political prisoners who are marked with yellow name tags in Belarusian prisons.
Tsikhanouski said they had all received visits from the public prosecutor’s office. “They tried to persuade us to submit a petition for clemency,” he said. “They talked to me for three hours, but I refused because I hadn’t committed the crimes I was accused of.”
On January 14, Tsikhanouski received a visit from Raman Pratasevich in Shodino prison. The former editor-in-chief of the opposition Telegram channel Nexta, who called for protests against the authoritarian ruler Alexander Lukashenko after the 2020 presidential election, had also been sentenced to eight years in prison at the beginning of May 2023.
Pratasevich was pardoned three weeks later. After his release, he distanced himself from his opposition activities and was shown several times on Belarusian state television.
For the meeting, Tsikhanouski was given prison clothes without a yellow name tag and led into a video-monitored room. “I knew I was going to be filmed,” he said. “I turned my back to the cameras, and the guards shouted at me about what I was doing. Then Pratasevich came in and said that he was visiting various prisons and that political prisoners would be released.”
Pratasevich wanted to persuade Tsikhanouski to apply for a pardon, or at least, agree to leave the country. He also brought coffee, tea and lard, the only package the prisoner had received in years.
Immediately afterward, Tsikhanouski was pressured with force by security officials and agreed in writing to leave the country. In view of his health problems, he agreed. He said he was given a lot to eat last month: butter, cheese, meat and double rations. Despite this, he now only weighs 79 kilograms (174 pounds).
In 2020, Tsikhanouski said, he didn’t think he would end up in prison before the presidential elections. He had at times thought that, as an entrepreneur, he might be sent to prison for a few years on the pretext of economic crimes.
Plea to Trump to help free activists still behind bars
Now, Tsikhanouski is urging US President Donald Trump to release more political prisoners. “Trump can free all political prisoners with a single powerful statement.” Tsikhanouski said. He added that there are still 1,100 political prisoners detained in Belarus.
In prison, Tsikhanouski said, all of Lukashenko’s opponents are called traitors to the country. “To me, anyone who does not resist is a traitor,” he said. “We must continue to fight against Lukashenko. Otherwise, our country will become a desert, a region without justice and compassion, a country that is materially and spiritually bankrupt.”
Tsikhanouski intends to reactivate his YouTube channel and open others, as well. He plans to make public all the files of his criminal proceedings, which have not been released to the public.
But, Tsikhanouski said, he has no ambitions to play a leading role in the Belarusian opposition in exile. His wife Tsikhanouskaya remains the opposition leader.
Five years in prison have taken their toll, Tsikhanouski said, and he is not suitable to be a leader for the time being. “I was alone for over five years, without news,” he said. “For three years, I didn’t even receive letters from my relatives. I still have a lot to learn.”
Tsikhanouski said the future of Belarus was firmly linked to Russia. “There will be no liberation of Belarus until the Putin regime collapses,” he said. “If it wasn’t for Putin, we wouldn’t be sitting here. Everything would have already been decided in 2020 or 2021.”
For her part, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya said she would stand by the Belarusians until all political prisoners are freed and democratic elections are held. “As long as I have enough strength and support,” she said, “I will continue this work.”
This article was originally written in Russian.
