We are talking about a cell in the literal sense of the word. It’s about 1.5 meters long and 2 meters wide, resembling a rectangular cage with metal bars. There isn’t a chair or even a bench inside. The prison administration forces the women to stand there for the entire duration of their punishment. Sitting is forbidden and will only make their confinement last longer.
The cage is located outside, and prisoners can be put there at any time, regardless of the weather. Women are forced to stand there in the rain, scorching sun, or freezing cold, often for up to three or four hours at a time. If a prisoner is held there until nightfall, she risks missing her meal.
Kasia Budzko, a former political prisoner who spent two and a half years in a women’s prison for her pro-democracy stance, shared this horrifying reality of a Belarusian prison. There are many punishments designed to humiliate and degrade those imprisoned. One of the most appalling is the confinement of political prisoners in a cage.
In Belarus today, it’s easy to end up behind bars. Simply disagreeing with the Lukashenko regime’s ideology is enough. But what will land you in a cage within a cage?
Political prisoners who violate any prison rule are placed there. This could be for fighting, or any other “incident.” The definition of “incident” is extremely broad. A woman can be sent to the cage for having a panic attack or for formally refusing a work assignment. According to former political prisoner Daria Chultsova, every woman in the colony knows that any “rudeness” towards the prison administration will get you sent straight to the cage. “Rudeness” can include any expression of personal opinion. It doesn’t even have to be said in a rude or impolite tone. Simply disagreeing with something and offering an explanation is enough. Even something as small as an incorrectly sewn button is enough to get you thrown in a cage. The administration might also send a woman to the cage as a preventative measure, to demonstrate to other prisoners what happens to those who break the rules.
In reality, no real reason is needed to put someone in a cage. The prison administration acts with impunity. This is a daily practice where humiliation and human rights violations have become the norm.
The cage isn’t just physical violence; it’s psychological torture. The prison administration deliberately creates the most difficult conditions possible for the prisoners.
Putting a person in a cage violates both international and national law. According to materials from the human rights center Viasna, this practice violates Part 2 of Article 10 of the Criminal Executive Code of the Republic of Belarus, as well as Rules 39 and 47 of the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Nelson Mandela Rules). The right not to be subjected to cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment and the right to humane treatment and respect for the inherent dignity of the human person are being violated.
The resilience of Belarusian women is astounding. According to one former political prisoner, she witnessed a woman stage a protest from inside her cage. Another former prisoner shared a story about a young woman who smiled throughout her entire ordeal. We must all show the same tenacity and persistence in fighting for the freedom of every political prisoner.
It’s important to remember that there are still over 1,400 officially recognized political prisoners and over 5,000 people imprisoned on politically motivated charges in Belarus. They are all living in inhumane conditions, and every single one of them is fighting for their life.
“This is truly horrific news. The fact that Belarusian women are being subjected to such inhumane torture is a blatant violation of international law and the most basic human rights. The world needs to know about the egregious crimes against humanity being committed by the Lukashenko regime, and Lukashenko himself must be held accountable. Our team, the National Anti-Crisis Management, along with our partners, has prepared all the necessary materials to refer the “situation in Belarus” to the International Criminal Court. The basis for this referral is the commission of crimes against humanity by Lukashenko and his accomplices. From May 2020 to May 2023 alone, at least 136,000 Belarusians became victims of crimes against humanity, including murder, enforced disappearances, torture, politically motivated sentences, and more. According to the UN, at least 300,000 Belarusians were forcibly deported from Belarus, primarily to Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia. That’s 3.5% of the Belarusian population. At a recent meeting with Lukashenko in Astana at the SCO summit, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres directly expressed to the dictator his principled position on the need to end the repression in Belarus. I implore the foreign ministers of Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia, as representatives of the countries most supportive of the Belarusian people, to take a stand, show their will, and refer Lukashenko’s case to the International Criminal Court in The Hague. It’s high time to use every available tool of international and national law to bring this dictator to justice.
People of Belarus, we keep fighting together for the freedom of the European Belarusian people.
Democracy will not prevail in Belarus until the dictator and his accomplices are held accountable,” emphasized Pavel Latushka, deputy head of the United Transitional Cabinet and head of the National Anti-Crisis Management.
This material uses data from the Viasna Human Rights Center, whose leader, Nobel Peace Prize winner Ales Bialiacki, was sentenced to 10 years in prison and is a political prisoner.
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