Belarusian authorities seem to be leading the authoritarians and authoritarian wannabes by example – branding almost any dissent as ‘extremism’ or ‘terrorism’ has become the go‑to tool of repression. The prosecution for ‘extremism’ often takes absurd forms – songs, memes, and anime are routinely deemed as manifestations of extremism. However, the consequences are far from humorous – Belarusian courts have repeatedly issued harsh sentences for making online donations, leaving online comments, or administering online platforms. Since the 2020-2021 protests, the Belarusian de-facto authorities reported at least 22.500 criminal cases opened on ‘anti-extremism’ grounds. Together with our partner Human Constanta, we present a joint analysis examining this worrying trend, which further deepens the pervasive crackdown on civil society.
The ‘ecosystem’ of ‘anti-extremism’ repression rests on specialised laws on combating ‘extremism’ and ‘terrorism’, corresponding criminal and administrative offences, numerous ‘extremist’ lists, amendments enabling the citizenship revocation for ‘extremist crimes’, the imposition of the death penalty for ‘acts of terrorism’ and ‘high treason’, and introducing ‘prone to extremism’ labels in prisons. The politicised nature of this system has been repeatedly criticised, including by the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus, the Group of Independent Experts on the Situation of Human Rights in Belarus, the OSCE Moscow Mechanism rapporteurs, as well as international and local non-governmental organisations.
In our analysis, we examine the impact of excessively broad provisions on digital rights and online behaviour in Belarus. We take a closer look at cases of political prosecution and threats arising from as little as online comments, participation in messaging groups, and online donations.