Former political prisonersForced displacement

Zmitser Heorhiyevich Kolas

Dissidentby since
Viasna since

Belarusian translator, literary scholar, and publisher. One of the most renowned popularizers of translated world literature.

Dmitry, the son of literary critic Georgy Kolos and brother of film director and teacher Vladimir Kolos, made a name for himself in the 1980s with his translations from French into Belarusian. Since the 1990s, Kolos has been involved in publishing. The Zmitser Kolas Publishing House is known for publishing world poetry, prose, and plays in the best Belarusian translations.

Dmitry was previously detained by the KGB in early March 2023. However, he was released after 10 days in custody, which he spent in a KGB pretrial detention center. He has not been charged.

In February 2026, Dmitry was arrested again, amid mass arrests of book publishers and distributors. Dmitry spent 14 days in the Okrestina detention center, after which he was never released. On March 3, 2026, a coalition of print publishers, including the Kamunikat.org Foundation, Lohvinau Publishing House, and Andrei Yanushkevich Publishing, was added to the Ministry of Internal Affairs' updated list of "extremist groups." Yaroslav Ivanyuk, Dmitry Kolos , Igor Logvinov, Vaclav Bogdanovich, Andrei Yanushkevich, and Alexander Evdakha were named in connection with the group. The publishers' websites and social media accounts were also added.

On September 16, 2026, he was released after a visit to Minsk by US President Donald Trump's special representative, John Cole, and taken to Lithuania.

Involved in repression

Igor Grigorievich Kenyukh
Igor Grigorievich Kenyukh
Overseers21 january 1980
Place:
IVS Okrestina
Type:
Head of the correctional facility
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Eugene Sergeevich Hitrik
Eugene Sergeevich Hitrik
Overseers16 november 1982
Place:
SIZO-1 Kolyadichi
Type:
Head of the correctional facility
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Co-defendants

Zmitser Heorhiyevich Kolas
In custody:
Hometown:
Minsk
Birthday:
01.01.1957
Was held in:
SIZO-1 Novodvorsky s/s, 143/4, Pashkovichi village, Minsk district, Minsk region 223016
Health problems:
Arterial hypertension
Articles:
Groups:
Cultural workers

Timeline

  1. 2026
  2. ~03.02.2026

    Status change

    In custody

  3. ~18.02.2026

    Transfer

    IVS Okrestina — In custody

  4. ~12.03.2026

    Transfer

    SIZO KGB — In custody

  5. 23.03.2026

    Transfer

    SIZO-1 Kolyadichi — In custody

  6. 16.09.2026

    Status change

    Forced displacement