Documented human rights violations and political events under Alexander Lukashenko's rule. This archive presents findings by international bodies and rights groups with direct links to their work. Not every violation can be attributed to Lukashenko personally: entries identify the authorities' actions and investigators' conclusions.
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The 1996 referendum changed parliament's structure and greatly strengthened presidential power. The Venice Commission describes the imbalance of powers after subsequent constitutional amendments.
Open source: Venice Commission ↗Yury Zakharanka, Viktar Hanchar, Anatol Krasouski and Dzmitry Zavadski disappeared in 1999–2000. PACE concluded there had been no proper investigation and noted suspicions involving senior officials. No independent court has established individual responsibility.
Open source: PACE Resolution 1371 (2004) ↗The OSCE/ODIHR report on the 2006 election recorded serious departures from democratic standards. Security forces dispersed protesters after the vote.
Open source: OSCE/ODIHR, 2006 ↗After the 19 December 2010 election, opposition candidates and protesters faced mass detention and criminal prosecution. OSCE/ODIHR described problems with vote counting and disproportionate use of force.
Open source: OSCE/ODIHR, 2010 ↗In March 2017, people protested in several cities against a decree taxing unemployed people. Human Rights Watch reported at least 700 arbitrary detentions, including peaceful protesters and journalists.
Open source: Human Rights Watch, 2017 ↗Rights groups said the requirement to obtain permission for public gatherings was used to arrest participants; authorities also blocked independent websites. Belarus continued to use the death penalty.
Open source: Human Rights Watch, 2018 ↗Before the 2020 election, authorities detained Viktar Babaryka, barred Valery Tsapkala and pursued campaign activists. Human Rights Watch documented threats against Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and her family.
Open source: Human Rights Watch, Events of 2020 ↗OSCE/ODIHR could not observe the 9 August election because it was not invited in time. The announced results prompted mass protests and fraud allegations; without a mission, OSCE cannot be cited for its own count of the vote.
Open source: OSCE/ODIHR, 2020 ↗On 9–12 August, security forces used rubber bullets, stun grenades and tear gas. Human Rights Watch reported nearly 7,000 detentions in four days, including bystanders.
Open source: Human Rights Watch, Events of 2020 ↗Former detainees described beatings, stress positions, electric shocks, threats of sexual violence, overcrowded cells and denial of medical care. The UN later described widespread, systematic abuses and a lack of effective investigation.
Open source: UN Human Rights Office, 2022 ↗Internet access was severely restricted from 9 to 12 August. Human Rights Watch reported dozens of independent sites blocked; authorities blamed external attacks, while independent researchers attributed disruptions to state interference.
Open source: Human Rights Watch, Events of 2020 ↗Journalists covering protests were detained, beaten and stripped of accreditation. The Belarusian Association of Journalists, cited by Human Rights Watch, documented hundreds of incidents of pressure in 2020.
Open source: Human Rights Watch, Events of 2020 ↗After the election, criminal cases targeted protesters, activists and opposition supporters. Maryia Kalesnikava and Maksim Znak were detained; other Coordination Council members left under threat of prosecution.
Open source: Human Rights Watch, Events of 2020 ↗Protests continued through autumn. By mid-November, Human Rights Watch reported 25,000 detentions since early August; this was an estimate as of publication, not a count of unique individuals.
Open source: Human Rights Watch, Events of 2020 ↗The UN Human Rights Office later found systematic, widespread and gross violations around the 2020 election. Human rights organisations repeatedly called for independent investigation and protection of victims.
Open source: UN Human Rights Office, 2023 ↗In 2021, authorities intensified prosecutions of activists, journalists and rights defenders; independent organisations were closed or forced to stop operating.
Open source: Human Rights Watch, 2021 ↗On 23 May, a Ryanair aircraft was diverted to Minsk. The European Council condemned the forced landing and the detention of Raman Pratasevich and Sofia Sapega by Belarusian authorities.
Open source: European Council, 2021 ↗The Council of the EU describes the Lukashenko regime as complicit in Russia's aggression against Ukraine since 24 February 2022 and imposed sanctions over support for the war.
Open source: Council of the EU ↗A 2023 decree restricted the issue and renewal of passports at consulates. The UN Human Rights Council called for measures affecting Belarusians abroad to be withdrawn.
Open source: UN Human Rights Council ↗OSCE/ODIHR again did not deploy a presidential election mission because it had no timely invitation. It was the third election since 2020 without full ODIHR observation.
Open source: OSCE/ODIHR, 2025 ↗UN experts and Human Rights Watch document persecution of independent voices and ill-treatment in detention. Releases of some prisoners do not establish an end to repression. We avoid a changing prisoner count without a date and methodology.
Open source: Human Rights Watch, Belarus ↗