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  • Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya: “Trials in absentia violate the basic rights and freedoms of Belarusians”

    December 15, 2022

    Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya: “It is clear that the regime's special proceedings (trials in absentia) violate the basic rights and liberties of Belarusians. And the criminal prosecution of me personally in special proceedings is not an exception.

    Now, in the example of the first such trial, we are witnessing the regime's treatment of the rights of the persecuted. The judicial system no longer even pretends to follow the procedure, ignoring even the right of the defendants to know what exactly they are charged with. People learn about the "claims" made by the state from the press releases of investigators, prosecutors and news about the trial, not from rulings or case files. They can't receive any information from the lawyers appointed by the regime or prepare a defense. If you hire a lawyer under a contract, they will clearly be disbarred, like the lawyers of Siarhei Tsikhanouski and many others before.

    In addition to eliminating defense, such "trials" in absentia disinvite the people on trial themselves. The hearings are held behind closed doors and no openness of the proceedings is observed. That's why they must be treated not as trials but as yet another crime the regime commits against the people of Belarus. Our legal team has noted that such criminal cases directly violate Article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Thus, all such violations will, beyond argument, be recorded by the human rights community. Everyone convicted in absentia must be rehabilitated”.

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