Belarusian singer Patrytsia Svitsina, who in 2020 refused to accept a scholarship from authoritarian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka citing her "moral principles," will face trial on August 1 on a charge of "actively participating in actions that blatantly disrupt social order."
The Minsk-based Vyasna human rights center said on July 24 that Judge Viktoria Shabunya of Minsk's central district court was assigned to preside over Svitsina's trial.
In May, Svitsina was shown on pro-government Telegram channels "confessing" to taking part in mass protests against the official results of the August 2020 presidential poll that proclaimed Lukashenka as the winner, blocking public transport, and publishing on social networks "negative information" about Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.
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.
In 2020, Svitsina, who was then a student at the ethnology and folklore department at Belarusian State University in Minsk, publicly rejected Lukashenka's scholarship amid the unprecedented crackdown on dissent after nationwide protests over claims the election was rigged.
Vyasna also said on July 24 that the Hrodna regional court in the country's west started the trial of Mikhail Myakeka over his participation in mass rallies protesting the results of the presidential poll in August 2020.
Myakeka, who was arrested in November 2022 after he returned to Belarus from Poland, is charged with inciting social hatred, organizing and preparing actions that blatantly disrupt social order, violence or the threat of violence against a law enforcement officer, and libeling Lukashenka.
According to Vyasna, Judge Viktar Syanko will oversee the trial.
Thousands have been arrested and much of the opposition leadership has been jailed or forced into exile following the anti-Lukashenka rallies in 2020. Several protesters have been killed and there have also been credible reports of torture during a widening security crackdown.
Belarusian authorities have also shut down several NGOs and independent media outlets.
The United States, the European Union, and several other countries have refused to acknowledge Lukashenka as the winner of the vote and imposed several rounds of sanctions on him and his regime, citing election fraud and the crackdown.