A Belarusian opposition activist, Igar Lednik, died in the prison where he was serving a sentence for
“defamation”
of President Alexander Lukashenko, his former party and a specialized NGO announced on Tuesday February 20, in this country which has more than 'a thousand political prisoners.
“Igar Lednik, former member of the Belarusian Social Democratic Party (Gramada), activist and journalist, died in prison at the age of 64
,” this political organization indicated on Telegram, information confirmed by the defense NGO Human Rights Viasna.
Arrested in December 2022, he was sentenced to three years in prison for
“defamation”
of the Belarusian president due to a publication in a Social Democratic Party newspaper, the training added.
In prison, his health had
“deteriorated considerably
,” noted the party, which is managed by activists abroad.
Surgery
The organization added that he had undergone surgery for a problem with the gastrointestinal system, and also suffered from a heart condition, but did not indicate the cause of his death or the exact date.
Repression has been in full swing in Belarus since the 2020 presidential election deemed fraudulent and won by Alexander Lukashenko, in power since 1994 and a loyal ally of Vladimir Putin in Russia.
The vote gave rise to protest demonstrations on an unprecedented scale and repressed by force.
Since then, hundreds of activists, journalists, rights defenders and ordinary citizens have been sentenced to long prison sentences or forced into exile.
According to the NGO Viasna, Belarus currently has more than 1,400 political prisoners.
He is the fifth political prisoner to die in custody in Belarus since 2021, according to the same source.
In early January, Vadzim Khrasko died of pneumonia in a penal colony, according to Viasna.
Belarusian human rights organizations denounced his conditions of detention, ensuring that he had not received the medical care he needed.