{"id":723535,"date":"2021-09-06T13:36:00","date_gmt":"2021-09-06T17:36:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=723535"},"modified":"2021-09-06T13:36:02","modified_gmt":"2021-09-06T17:36:02","slug":"belarusian-opposition-leaders-sentenced-to-10-11-years-in-prison-for-protesting-lukashenko-regime","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/belarusian-opposition-leaders-sentenced-to-10-11-years-in-prison-for-protesting-lukashenko-regime\/","title":{"rendered":"Belarusian Opposition Leaders Sentenced To 10, 11 Years In Prison For Protesting Lukashenko Regime"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fbelarusian-opposition-leaders-sentenced-to-10-11-years-in-prison-for-protesting-lukashenko-regime%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=723535&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/B0066DB9-0B81-4388-A757-C41D7AF8AF0A_1_201_a.jpeg?w=1200&amp;h=800&amp;ixlib=react-9.0.3\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\" \/><\/div>\n<p class=\"p1\">Two top opposition leaders in Belarus were sentenced to prison on Monday after being part of efforts to push back against the Lukashenko regime.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">One opposition leader, Maria Kolesnikova, was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/world\/belarus-opposition-trial-kolesnikova\/2021\/09\/06\/32b59b84-0ef6-11ec-a511-cb913c7e5ba0_story.html\">found<\/a> to be guilty \u201cof conspiracy to overthrow the government,\u201d per The Washington Post. She was part of protests last year against the election of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. Those who oppose the Lukashenko regime claim that the election was fraudulent.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">&nbsp;She was sentenced to eleven years in prison.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cHer opposition colleague, lawyer Maxim Znak, 40, who stood trial alongside her, was sentenced to 10 years. The two were also convicted of inciting action aimed at harming national security and the creation of an extremist group,\u201d The Post added.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Authorities reportedly attempted to deport Kolesnikova last year, but she refused to be pushed out of the country and stayed to be tried instead.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">The Washington Post reported that she became a figure of the Belarusian opposition forces last year after \u201cshe was abducted in the street in Minsk by masked security agents last September and driven to the Ukraine border.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cTold she could leave or stand trial, she refused to depart, ripped up her passport to avoid deportation, and was arrested and tried. She later said in a statement released through a lawyer that the security agents told her she could be deported \u2018alive or in pieces,\u2019\u201d the outlet added.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">The international community has expressed disapproval of the treatment of protesters in Belarus, and released statements confirming such feelings on Monday.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken released a statement, saying the United States \u201ccondemns the politically motivated conviction and shameful sentencing today of Belarusian opposition figures Maria Kalesnikava and Maksim Znak.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cRegrettably, these sentencings are further evidence of the regime\u2019s total disregard for the human rights and fundamental freedoms of the people of Belarus,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Blinken continued, saying, \u201cWe reiterate our call for an end to the campaign of repression against the people of Belarus for exercising their human rights inside and outside Belarus and for the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners \u2013 including Ms. Kalesnikava and Mr. Znak. We reiterate our call for Belarusian authorities to begin a genuine dialogue with the democratic opposition and members of civil society leading to free and fair elections under international observation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">The European Union also decried the imprisonment of the two opposition leaders.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cThe E.U. deplores the continuous blatant disrespect by the Minsk regime of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of the people of Belarus,\u201d spokesman Peter Stano said in a statement. \u201cThe EU also reiterates its demands for the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners in Belarus,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Britain also spoke out against the sentences. \u201cThe sentencing of Maria Kolesnikova and Maksim Znak shows the Belarusian authorities continuing their assault on the defenders of democracy and freedom,\u201d Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/britain-says-jailing-belarus-protest-leaders-shows-lukashenkos-pariah-status-2021-09-06\/\"><span class=\"s1\">said<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cLocking up political opponents will only deepen the pariah status of the Lukashenko regime.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the candidate who ran for the presidency last year against Lukashenko, voiced support for the two leaders, as well.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cThe regime sentenced Maria Kalesnikava &amp; Maksim Znak to 11 &amp; 10 years in prison. We demand the immediate release of Maria &amp; Maksim, who aren\u2019t guilty of anything. It\u2019s terror against Belarusians who dare to stand up to the regime. We won\u2019t stop until everybody is free in Belarus,\u201d she <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Tsihanouskaya\/status\/1434805089592619010\"><span class=\"s1\">tweeted<\/span><\/a>.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cMaria &amp; Maksim are the heroes for Belarusians. The regime wants us to see them crushed &amp; exhausted. But look \u2013 they are smiling &amp; dancing. They know \u2013<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">&nbsp; <\/span>we will release them much earlier than these 11 years. Their terms shouldn\u2019t frighten us \u2013 Maksim and Maria wouldn\u2019t want this,\u201d she added.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\" readability=\"9.7352941176471\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Maria &amp; Maksim are the heroes for Belarusians. The regime wants us to see them crushed &amp; exhausted. But look \u2013 they are smiling &amp; dancing. They know \u2013  we will release them much earlier than these 11 years. Their terms shouldn&#8217;t frighten us \u2013 Maksim and Maria wouldn&#8217;t want this. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/9aLMyArjXa\">pic.twitter.com\/9aLMyArjXa<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya (@Tsihanouskaya) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Tsihanouskaya\/status\/1434805089592619010?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">September 6, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"p2\"><i>The Daily Wire is one of America\u2019s fastest-growing conservative media companies and counter-cultural outlets for news, opinion, and entertainment. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a<\/i> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/subscribe\"><span class=\"s1\"><i>member<\/i><\/span><\/a><i>.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Two top opposition leaders in Belarus were sentenced to prison on Monday after being part of efforts to push back against the Lukashenko regime.One opposition leader, Maria Kolesnikova, was found &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-723535","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/723535","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=723535"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/723535\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=723535"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=723535"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=723535"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}