Lukashenko pardons 32 political prisoners, 1,300 remain behind bars

(Patria) - Authoritarian President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko has pardoned an additional 32 political prisoners, writes pro-government Telegram channel Pul Pervogo, although an estimated 1,300 opposition activists across the country remain behind bars.

The identities of those pardoned were not released, but the report states they were all convicted of extremism, a charge often used against political activists, writes the Belarusian service of Radio Free Europe.

According to the report, there are 24 men and eight women, and nine are over 50 years old.

The individuals have been released and do not have to serve their full prison sentences, but their convictions have not been erased from their criminal records. It is added that the Ministry of Internal Affairs will monitor their behavior after their release.

This is the sixth time this year that Belarusian authorities have pardoned a group of political prisoners, bringing the total number of those released to 178. Earlier this month, 31 political prisoners were pardoned.

In July, authorities pardoned 18 people, including Ryhor Kastusyou, the former leader of one of the opposition parties, who was serving a 10-year prison sentence and is reportedly in poor health.

Additional pardons followed in August, and twice in September.

The latest pardons come as a sort of epilogue to the brutal crackdown on political dissidents following the mass protests of 2020, which were triggered by disputed presidential election results.

Lukashenko responded to the demonstrations with a nationwide crackdown, causing at least 13,000 people to flee Belarus into exile.

According to human rights organizations, around 1,300 political prisoners remain in Belarusian prisons, including politicians, journalists, human rights defenders, and civic activists.

Belarus has scheduled its next presidential election for January 2025, and Lukashenko is expected to be declared the winner.