Statement of the Ukrainian PEN Centre in support of Belarusian writers

Ukrainian writers are concerned about the events unfolding in neighbouring Belarus. There, in the capital and a number of other cities, mass protests against deepening integration with the Russian Federation have recently taken place. Alyaksandr Lukashenka's regime responded to such manifestations of dissent by intensifying repressions. Detained activists, including many of our fellow litterateurs, members of Belarusian PEN Centre, are either imprisoned or imposed with administrative fines of a significant amount just for expressing their views and beliefs.

Thus far, civil activists Paviel Sieviaryniec and Alena Talstaya have already served their several-day imprisonment in the notorious Offender Isolation Centre on Akrestsina Street. Mrs Talstaya describes detention facilities as repugnant: unsanitary conditions, freezing cold, and brutal treatment from guards and convoy on the verge of torture. Furthermore, they ordered the activist to pay a fine of 1350 Belarusian rubles (BYR).

On 9 and 10 January, trials of translator Liavon Barsceuski, linguist Piatro Sadoŭski, Uladzimir Niaklaeu and Uladzimir Arlou – prominent representatives of contemporary Belarusian belles-lettres – are to take place in courts of Central and Lenin districts of Minsk. Their works as well as their active civil stance are well-known beyond Belarus, including in Ukraine.

PEN Ukraine urges Belarusian authorities to end persecution and harassment of civil activists and writers who represent the face of contemporary Belarusian literature and Belarusian culture in the whole world.

Signatories (the list is being updated):

Andriy Kurkov
Myroslav Marynovych
Mykola Riabchuk
Metropolitan Borys Gudziak
Oleksandr Irvanets
Olena Styazhkina
Anatoliy Dnistrovyi
Andrij Bondar
Yevhen Zakharov
Ostap Slyvynsky
Oles Ilchenko
Stepan Protsiuk
Tetyana Teren
Natalka Sniadanko
Igor Kozlovskyy
Serhiy Zhadan
Pavlo Korobchuk
Oksana Kutsenko
Halyna Kruk
Borys Khersonskyi
Yevhenia Chupryna
Petro Yatsenko
Oleksiy Sinchenko
Halyna Vdovychenko
Ola Hnatiuk
Pavlo Volvach
Ivan Andrusiak
Kateryna Botanova
Halyna Coynash
Julia Musakovska
Olha Luchuk
Taras Luchuk
Natalia Beltchenko
Oleksandra Koval
Tanja Maljartschuk
Kostiantyn Sigov
Natalka Bilotserkivets
Olesya Yaremchuk
Oleksiy Panych
Volodymyr Rafeenko
Oleksandr Boichenko
Mykola Horbal
Taras Vozniak
Victor Morozov
Iya Kiva
Kateryna Kalytko
Diana Klochko
Iryna Tsilyk
Artem Chapai
Oleksiy Nikitin
Iryna Vikyrchak
Iryna Slavinska
Andriy Lyubka
Mark Belorusez
Kateryna Mikhalitsyna
Victoria Amelina
Oksana Lutsyshyna
Romana Romanyshyn
Andriy Lesiv
Anastasia Levkova
Halyna Shyyan
Vasyl Makhno
Vitaliy Portnikov
Vitaliy Chernetskyi
Archbishop Ihor Isichenko
Andriy Pavlyshyn
Petro Rykhlo
Olha Mukha
Oleksandr Vilchynskyi
Eleonora Solovey
Alla Tatarenko
Marjana Savka
Yuri Makarov
Volodymyr Kazarin
Marianna Kijanowska
Maria Galina
Arkadiy Shtypel
Anna Vovchenko

Photo credit: Радыё Свабода(Radio Liberty Belarus)