Equality before the law and individual liberty in Belarus
By: Hugo Tai
Apr 05, 2022
This week’s graph shows an increase in the Belarusian government’s repression of four prominent human rights after the mass protests against the 2020 election results.
Freedom from torture and access to justice have dropped to close to the bottom of the scale. Some 7,000 Belarusians were arrested and often tortured following the demonstrations, including beatings, prolonged stress positions, electric shocks, and rape. An opposition figure’s right to appeal his verdict was rejected, and some arrested protesters were deemed to make video confessions under pressure. Freedom of foreign movement and freedom from political killing has also hit bottom. Belarus has tightened its border control since late-2020 on the pretext of fighting COVID-19, anda leader of a Belarusian exile group was reportedly killed in Ukraine by regime agents.
