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Ales Viktaravich Bialiatski (; born 25 September 1962) is a human rights defender, Belarusian democratization activist, writer, chair of the Viasna Human Rights Centre and prisoner of conscience. An activist for Belarusian independence and democracy since the early 1980s, Bialiatski is a founding member of Viasna and the Belarusian Popular Front, serving as leader of the latter from 1996 to 1999. He is also a member of the Coordination Council of the Belarusian opposition. He has been called "a pillar of the human rights movement in Eastern Europe" by The New York Times, and recognised as a prominent pro-democracy activist in Belarus.
Bialiatski's defence of human rights in Belarus has brought him numerous international accolades. In 2020, he won the Right Livelihood Award, widely known as the "Alternative Nobel Prize". In 2022, Bialiatski was awarded the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize, along with the organisations Memorial and Centre for Civil Liberties.
Bialiatski has been imprisoned twice; firstly from 2011 to 2014, and currently since 2021, on both occasions on charges of tax evasion. Bialiatski, as well as other human rights activists, have called the charges politically motivated.
On 3 March 2023, Bialiatski was sentenced in Minsk to ten years in prison for "cash smuggling" as well as "financing actions and groups that grossly violated public order." Human rights activists view the charges as fabricated in order to silence Bialiatski and his movement after he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
Bialiatski is a scholar of Belarusian literature and graduated from Homiel State University in 1984 with a degree in Russian and Belarusian Philology. After graduation, Bialiatski worked as a schoolteacher in the Lieĺčycy District in Gomel Region.
From 1985 to 1986, he served in the army as an armoured vehicle driver in an antitank artillery battalion near Yekaterinburg (then Sverdlovsk), Russia.
Bialiatski founded the Viasna Human Rights Centre in 1996. The Minsk-based organization which was then called “Viasna-96”, was transformed into a nationwide NGO in June 1999. On 28 October 2003 the Supreme Court of Belarus cancelled the state registration of the Viasna Human Rights Centre for its role in the observation of the 2001 presidential election. Since then, the leading Belarusian human rights organization has been working without registration.
Bialiatski was chairman of the Working Group of the Assembly of Democratic NGOs (2000–2004). In 2007–2016, he was vice-president of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH).
Bialiatski is a member of the Union of Belarusian Writers (since 1995) and the Belarusian PEN-Centre (since 2009).
On 24 October 2011, Bialiatski was sentenced to 4½ years in prison and confiscation of property. Bialiatski pleaded not guilty, saying that the money had been received on his bank accounts to cover Viasna's human rights activities.
Several international human rights non-governmental organisations called for Bialiatski's "immediate and unconditional release".
Bialiatski served his sentence in penal colony number 2 in the city of Babruysk, working as a packer in a sewing shop.
He was repeatedly punished by the prison administration for "violation of the prison rules", and was declared a "malicious offender", which prevented him from being amnestied in 2012 and deprived him of family visits and food parcels.
During his time in prison, Bialiatski wrote many texts on literary topics, essays, memoirs, which were posted to his associates.
An unprecedented campaign of international solidarity was launched during his imprisonment. Bialiatski was released from prison 20 months ahead of schedule on 21 June 2014 after spending 1,052 days of arbitrary detention in harsh conditions, including serving periods of solitary confinement.Ales
The date of Bialiatski's arrest, 4 August, is celebrated annually as the International Day of Solidarity with the Civil Society of Belarus. It was established in 2012 as a response to the activist's arrest.The
During the 2020 Belarusian protests, he became a member of the Coordination Council of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya.
On 14 July 2021, the Belarusian police searched Viasna's employees' homes around the country and raided the central office. Bialiatski and his colleagues Vladimir Stephanovich and Vladimir Labkovich were arrested. On 6 October 2021, Bialiatski was charged with tax evasion with a maximum penalty of 7 years in prison. As of 7 October 2022, he was still in prison.
On 3 March 2023, the Belarus judicial system convicted Bialiatski of smuggling and financing political protests, as "actions grossly violating public order", and sentenced him to prison for 10 years.
Bialiatski's work has been recognised by human rights organisations globally. In March 2006, Bialiatski and Viasna won the 2005 Homo Homini Award of the Czech NGO People in Need, which recognizes "an individual who is deserving of significant recognition due to their promotion of human rights, democracy and non-violent solutions to political conflicts". The prize was awarded by former Czech President and dissident Václav Havel. In 2006, Bialiatski won the Swedish Per Anger Prize,"Aliaksandr as well as the Andrei Sakharov Freedom Award of the Norwegian Helsinki Committee.
In 2012, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe awarded him its Václav Havel Human Rights Prize for his work as a human rights defender, "so that the citizens of Belarus may one day aspire to our European standards". As he was detained at the time, the award was received on his behalf by his wife. After his release, he visited Strasbourg to thank the Assembly for its support. He was also awarded the Lech Wałęsa Award for "democratisation of the Republic of Belarus, his active promotion of human rights and aid provided for persons currently persecuted by Belarusian authorities" that year, as well as, together with Uganda's Civil Society Coalition on Human Rights and Constitutional Law, the 2011 Human Rights Defenders Award by the United States Department of State. As he was still imprisoned at the time of the Ales Bialiatski was awarded the prize in absentia, and the award was passed to his wife, Natallia Pinchuk, in the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw, Poland on 25 September 2012.
Bialiatski was declared civil rights defender of the year by the Swedish Civil Rights Defenders group in 2014. In 2020, he shared Right Livelihood Award, widely known as "Alternate Nobel Prize" with Nasrin Sotoudeh, Bryan Stevenson, and Lottie Cunningham Wren. In December of the same year, Bialiatski was named among the representatives of the Belarusian opposition, and honored with the Sakharov Prize by the European Parliament.
Bialiatski has received honorary citizenship from the cities of Genoa (in 2010), Paris (in 2012), and Syracuse, Sicily (in 2014).
In 2022, Bialiatski was awarded the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize along with organisations Memorial and Centre for Civil Liberties. Prior to his 2022 award of the Nobel Peace Prize, Bialiatski was nominated five times unsuccessfully, including in 2006 and 2007. In 2012, he was again nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, but the prize was awarded to the European Union. In February 2013, he was nominated by the Norwegian MP Jan Tore Sanner. In 2014, members of the Polish Parliament nominated Bialiatski for the Nobel Peace Prize. The nomination was signed by 160 Polish MPs.
Following the awarding of the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize, members of the Belarusian opposition celebrated it, with Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya saying in a Tweet, "The prize is an important recognition for all Belarusians fighting for freedom & democracy. All political prisoners must be released without delay."
Uladzimir Siuchykau's essay "The Sweet Word of Freedom!" published in the compilation "Night Notes". Appendix "Literary Belarus" No. 4 (92) in the newspaper "Novy Chas". 25 April 2014 / No. 16 (385).Гэта / This sweet word is freedom!
Uladzimir Niakliayeu’s poem "Rymtseli" dedicated to the 50th anniversary of human rights defender Ales Bialiatski.РЫМЦЕЛІ. / THE ROMANS. Ales Bialiatskyi
Siarzhuk Sys's poem "To Ales Bialiatski".Алесю / Ales Bialiatskyi
Mikhas Skobla's essay "A Letter to Ales Bialiatski".Ліст / A letter to Ales Bialiatski
Feature film "Vyshe Neba" ("Above the Sky", directed by Dmitry Marinin and Andrey Kureychik, 2012) features an episode depicting Ales Bialiatski's arrest shown in the news of the TV channel Belarus-1 (56th minute).«Выше / "Above the sky"
Documentary "Ales Bialiatski's Candle of Truth" (written by Palina Stsepanenka, 2011, Belarus).«Сьвечка / "Ales Bialiatski's candle of truth"
Documentary "Spring" (directed by Volha Shved, 2012, Belarus).«Вясна», / "Spring", doc. a film about Ales Bialiatski.
Documentary "A Heart That Never Dies" (directed by Erling Borgen, 2015, Norway).
Documentary "1,050 days of Solitude" (director Aleh Dashkevich, 2014 Belarus).1050 / 1050 days of solitude
Artist Ai Weiwei constructed Ales Bialiatski's portrait from Lego bricks. The work was displayed at the exhibition "Next" in the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington, DC.Ai
During his university years, Bialiatski played bass guitar in a band called Baski. He has stated that his two major hobbies now are mushroom hunting and planting flowers. He generally speaks the Belarusian language.
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