VILNIUS – Belarus opposition determine Sergei Tikhanovsky, who was launched following an attraction from the White Home, stated Sunday that US President Donald Trump may safe the liberty of all Belarusian political prisoners.
A tearful and emaciated Tikhanovsky spoke to reporters within the Lithuanian capital Vilnius a day after he was launched from a number of years of jail with greater than a dozen others.
“President Trump now has the ability and alternative to free all political prisoners in Belarus with a single phrase, and I ask him to take action, to say that phrase,” Tikhanovsky stated.
The jap European nation nonetheless holds greater than 1,000 political prisoners in its jails, in line with Belarusian human rights group Viasna.
Tikhanovsky stated he hoped to return to Belarus “however when, I do not know but”.
“You need to perceive, I spent greater than 5 years alone in a solitary cell,” he stated.
“I used to be fully remoted. I’ve little or no data and now I would like to seek out out quite a lot of issues.”
Tikhanovsky was joined on the information convention by his spouse Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, who took the mantle of the opposition motion after he was jailed.
“The chief of the opposition is Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, my spouse. And I’m not going to problem that,” Tikhanovsky stated.
– ‘Extremely emotional’ –
The prisoner launch on Saturday got here simply hours after US particular envoy Keith Kellogg met Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko in Minsk, the highest-profile US go to in years.
Tikhanovsky, 46, had been imprisoned for greater than 5 years.
The favored YouTuber had deliberate to run in opposition to Lukashenko within the August 2020 presidential election, however was arrested and detained weeks earlier than the vote.
A charismatic activist, Tikhanovsky drew the ire of authorities for his marketing campaign slogan, “Cease the cockroach”, a reference to Lukashenko.
He was sentenced in 2021 to 18 years in jail for “organising riots” and “inciting hatred”, then to a different 18 months for “insubordination”.
Tikhanovskaya — a political novice on the time of her husband’s arrest — ran in opposition to Lukashenko in his place however misplaced after what the opposition described as widespread falsification. She later fled Belarus.
Lukashenko claimed a document seventh time period in elections earlier this 12 months that observers dismissed as a farce.
Tikhanovskaya, who has been residing in exile in Lithuania, stated Sunday “it was extremely emotional for me to see lastly my husband after lengthy 5 years”.
“He’s alive and we collectively once more and stay dedicated to our combat,” she advised reporters, earlier than thanking Trump and his administration for his or her “tireless efforts”.
– ‘Tough circumstances’ –
Lithuania shelters tens of hundreds of Belarusians, lots of whom moved there as Minsk clamped down on dissent within the 2020 presidential vote’s aftermath.
The Baltic state can be a hub for some Russian opposition figures, together with Leonid Volkov, an ally of the late Alexei Navalny.
Among the many 13 others freed Saturday have been Radio Liberty journalist Igor Karnei, arrested in 2023 and jailed for collaborating in an “extremist” organisation.
Lithuania stated the launched prisoners have been now receiving “correct care” within the Baltic state.
Although none wanted emergency medical help, “one among them wanted emergency medical consideration” as “they have been imprisoned in troublesome circumstances”, Lithuanian International Minister Kestutis Budrys stated.
The Council of Europe rights watchdog known as on Sunday for the discharge of the remaining political prisoners, saying some have been “incommunicado for a number of years”.
“They need to all be launched instantly and unconditionally. Their place was by no means in jail,” stated the assertion by rapporteurs of the group’s Parliamentary Meeting (PACE).
Belarus, dominated by Lukashenko since 1994, has outlawed all real opposition events. It’s the solely European nation to retain the demise penalty as a punishment.
Lukashenko’s spokeswoman stated the Belarusian chief had ordered the discharge of the prisoners on Trump’s “request”, Russian state media reported.
The US chief appeared to take credit score, writing “Thanks President Trump!” on social media, alongside a hyperlink to a information story concerning the prisoner launch.
