Russian jailed for ‘inciting hatred’ in Belarus
A court in Belarus has sentenced a prominent anti-government activist to 11 years behind bars for allegedly encouraging mass unrest and threatening the security of the Eastern European nation.
In a ruling issued on Monday, a judge at the Minsk City Court handed Yegor Dudnikov, a Russian citizen, more than a decade in jail. “On the basis of the crimes, the defendant will serve a term of 11 years in a high security colony,” the jurist announced.
According to prosecutors, Dudnikov was guilty of deliberately inciting social hostilities and publicly calling for the overthrow of the country’s government online.
The opposition figure, who previously worked for a Telegram channel that helped to organize protests in the aftermath of last year’s disputed presidential election, pleaded guilty during the proceedings, officials said. The group he ran, named Civil Self-Defense Units of Belarus, has been outlawed as extremist in Belarus.
In July, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko claimed that Western-backed activists had set up “sleeper” terrorist cells in an effort to take power. A number of neighborhood watch groups and Telegram channels were formed last year after the veteran strongman was declared the victor in the election, with around 80% of the vote.
The opposition, and most Western nations, have refused to recognize the poll as legitimate, and thousands of people took to the streets to call for a fresh vote after the election. The authorities responded with a crackdown, dispersing demonstrators and engaging in a widespread campaign of arrests.
Earlier this month, another Belarusian court handed the husband of opposition figurehead Svetlana Tikhanovskaya 18 years behind bars for his purported role in the unrest. Sergey Tikhanosky was hit with the sentence after prosecutors said he had helped foment hatred and discord in society. Tikhanovskaya left the country shortly after the election and has since been based in neighboring Lithuania. She has called on Western capitals to impose sanctions on Lukashenko’s government in response.
In July, Viktor Babariko, a veteran Belarusian opposition figure who was barred from participating in the election, was sentenced to 14 years behind bars after officials accused him of fraud and corruption. His chief of staff, Maria Kolesnikova, also a prominent member of the team behind Tikhanovskaya, is also now in a Belarusian prison, serving an 11-year term.
The EU broadened its measures against Minsk after what it describes as the “fraudulent” vote, which Brussels has condemned as neither free nor fair.
