A court in Belarus opened the trial of Natallya Malets on a charge of facilitating extremist activities as the government of authoritarian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka shows no signs of letting up in its campaign to crush any perceived signs of dissent.
The Brest regional court in the country's west on July 8 launched the trial of the 63-year-old Malets, who is accused of wiring cash 125 times to political prisoners. If found guilty, she faces up to six years in prison.
Last year, Malets was handed an 18-month parole-like sentence on a charge of "insulting a representative of law enforcement." Human right groups have recognized her as a political prisoner.
Meanwhile, the Hrodna regional court on July 8 started the trial in absentia of journalist Ales Kirkevich on the same charge of facilitating extremist activities. It remains unclear what Kirkevich did to be charged with the offense.
The Crisis In Belarus
Read our coverage as Belarusian strongman Alyaksandr Lukashenka continues his brutal crackdown on NGOs, activists, and independent media following the August 2020 presidential election.
Since mass protests in 2020 challenged the official result of a presidential election where Lukashenka was announced the winner -- many in Belarus and abroad say the vote was rigged -- Belarusian authorities have launched a sometimes deadly crackdown on independent journalists, activists, opposition politicians, and democratic institutions.
Over the weekend, the Brest regional court sentenced Iryna Pahadayeva to three years in prison, saying the 55-yrear-old activist wired cash to jailed political prisoners 32 times.
Pahadayeva was arrested in May and her state of health has dramatically worsened while in custody, as she suffers from issues related to high blood pressure. Human right groups have recognized her as a political prisoner.
The same court is currently trying another activist, Iryna Bandarenka, on the same charge. Bandarenka is accused of sending cash to political prisoners and bringing parcels to them while they were held in a detention center in Brest.
The Vyasna human rights group said on July 8 that 18 political prisoners, including four women, had been released since last week after Lukashenka signed a law on mass amnesty.
According to Vyasna, some political prisoners refused to accept the amnesty after they were required to write a letter to Lukashenka asking him personally for clemency.
Lukashenka, 69, has been in power since 1994. He has tightened his grip on the country since the August 2020 election by arresting -- sometimes violently -- more than 35,000 people. Fearing for their safety, most opposition members have fled the country.
The West has refused to recognize the results of the election and does not consider Lukashenka to be the country's legitimate leader.
Many countries have imposed sanctions against Lukashenka's regime in response to the suppression of dissent in the country.