A leading human rights group in Belarus, the Viasna human rights center, reported that over the past three years, at least 4,690 individuals have been convicted on politically-motivated charges. This crackdown on dissent comes in the wake of the August 2020 presidential election, which sparked significant protests met with harsh repression by the authorities.
The representative of Viasna highlighted the alarming trend of political persecution in Belarus, stating that the repressive actions taken by the government are aimed at suppressing all freedoms. The scale of repression in Belarus has been described as broader than that seen in neighboring Russia.
