All persecuted

In 2004, she graduated from the Law School of the Belarusian State University. Since then, Ekaterina has worked as a lawyer.

In 2013, she joined the Verdict law firm. She specializes in business consulting and defense.

Ekaterina participated in social projects, for example, she spoke about the “Names” project.

In 2020, she retrained in administrative law and began defending victims of repression. Ekaterina volunteered as a lawyer for those jailed for 24 hours and also defended Stepan Latypov before her license was revoked.

Ekaterina's license was revoked in July 2021. The formal reason given was "systematic violation of the requirements and conditions of legal practice."

After that, Ekaterina moved into a different field, working at the Mayak Correctional Center, which helps children with special needs. Judging by her social media profile, she performs administrative functions there.

Ekaterina has a daughter who is now 10 years old.

Vitaly is a political strategist living in the United States. He came to Gomel to visit his parents and was arrested on July 29, 2020, after which he was placed in pretrial detention.
According to the charges brought against him, Vitaly was accused of organizing and preparing group actions that grossly violated public order during a signature collection picket held by the initiative group for the nomination of Svetlana Tikhanovskaya as a presidential candidate on May 29, 2020, in Grodno. Thus, he became one of the defendants in the so-called "Tikhanovsky case."

On October 19, 2020, he was released from custody, but remained under investigation, and on October 27, he left Belarus.

Михаил — доцент, кандидат технических наук, автор монографий и разработок, первым в Беларуси зарегистрировал автомобиль на альтернативном топливе. Руководил лабораторией в Витебском технологическом университете, занимавшейся водородными технологиями.

В 2006 году интерес к его работе проявил КГБ. После отказа сотрудничать с органами Михаила обвинили в «хищении через злоупотребление служебными полномочиями» и в 2007 году приговорили к 5 годам колонии.

После освобождения он занялся правозащитной деятельностью: вошёл в организацию «Платформа», позже стал сооснователем «Платформы Инновейшн». Повторно был задержан в августе 2014 года, через неделю после оглашения приговора в отношении директора ЧКПУ «Платформа Инновейшн» Андрея Бондаренко. В 2015 году Витебский областной суд признал его виновным по нескольким статьям — разглашение служебной тайны, незаконные средства для сбора информации, дача взятки — и приговорил к лишению свободы в условиях строгого режима. В октябре того же года Верховный суд усилил наказание на полгода.

Освобождён в феврале 2021 года, полностью отбыв назначенный судом срок наказания.

23 января 2024 года Михаила вновь задержали, при обыске и допросах к нему применяли насилие. После выхода из изолятора он покинул Беларусь.

Natalia Yaroshenko is the sister of former political prisoner Lyudmila Goncharenko. She spent 147 days in the Gomel temporary detention center, and then she was deported to Ukraine with a ban on entry to Belarus for five years. During her imprisonment, the woman was also interrogated by the KGB, forced to admit that she had filmed Russian military equipment. Natalia had to undergo a polygraph test, the results of which she was never informed of. "But I really didn't film anything, I didn't do anything," she says.

According to Natalia, she spent six days in a punishment cell. There was nothing there except for high bunks knocked together from planks, a washbasin and a toilet. "I felt sick. They called a doctor - I had high blood pressure," Natalia recalls. After that, she was returned to a regular cell. In the temporary detention center, Natalia, according to her, a vein burst in her leg, the woman asked for a month to be taken to the hospital. For almost five months of imprisonment, the interviewee did not have any walks or parcels.

Orthodox priest. He is the father of 6 children, was forced to leave the country with his family. Currently a refugee in France, he serves Orthodox Belarusians in Paris. Member of the Christian Vision group from its very foundation.

On September 18, 2020, he was detained, the Sovetsky District Court of Gomel (Judge Alexander Mokhorev) imposed an administrative penalty on him in the form of 10 days of administrative arrest under Part 1 of Article 23.34 of the Code of Administrative Offenses (violation of the established procedure for holding a meeting, rally, street procession, demonstration, picketing, or other mass event). On September 28, 2020, Archpriest Vladimir, immediately after serving his sentence according to the court of September 18, was again subjected to an administrative penalty in the form of 15 days of arrest under the same article by the same court, in the same composition.

Thus, in total, Archpriest Vladimir Drobyshevsky spent 25 days in prison continuously. In the temporary detention center, his pectoral cross and cassock were taken away from him. The Investigative Committee continued to put pressure on the priest.

It's unclear exactly when Marina was detained, but she last appeared on social media in mid-October 2024. Her extremist listing indicates she is currently serving a sentence, meaning she either received a probationary sentence or a prison colony. However, judging by the fact that she hasn't appeared online since her trial, it's likely Marina Luts was sentenced to a prison colony.

From 2014 until the end of 2022, she ran her own business organizing weddings and other events. In 2023, she retrained as a UX/UI designer, working primarily as a freelancer. Marina has a young son.

According to human rights activists, she will be released in the summer of 2025.

Pavel was arrested in August 2024 and convicted six times in a row under administrative law for subscribing to “extremist materials.”

The 65-year-old director of an auto parts store, Viktor Makarenko, was charged under Article 190 of the Criminal Code ("violation of the equality of citizens") for refusing to sell goods to Russian military personnel and calling them occupiers.

On October 28, 2022, one of the pro-government Telegram channels published a post reporting the detention of the director of an auto parts store in Baranovichi. According to their information, the man told his subordinate: "Don't sell them anything, they are occupiers." The occupiers were Russian military personnel.

The director of an auto parts store was detained. A pro-government Telegram channel claimed that after the detention, evidence was found of the man's participation in the 2020 protests, as well as facts of money transfers to the Armed Forces of Ukraine made after February 24.

The man was indeed detained as part of a criminal case under Article 190 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus for three days, and was also arrested for 15 days under Article 19.11 of the Code of Administrative Offenses (dissemination of extremist materials).

The man remained free until the trial.

The Baranovichi District and Baranovichi City Court issued a verdict on February 16, 2023. Prosecutor Svetlana Pasemko requested a fine of 300 basic units (11,100 rubles) for Makarenko. Judge Artem Podolyanets sentenced the man to this punishment.

Even before the trial, the Baranovichi prosecutor filed a lawsuit in the economic court to terminate the activities of individual entrepreneur Makarenko. On December 19, 2022, the economic court stopped his activities. Viktor Makarenko worked as an individual entrepreneur since 1993, now the man is retired.

The girl posted her last photo on social media on November 18, 2024, from Turkey. After that, she went to Belarus — that’s probably when she was detained. She hasn’t appeared online on Telegram for a long time, and her social media has been inactive since November. The girl is probably now in a pretrial detention center.

After graduating from MSLU, Veronica worked for three years as a flight attendant at Qatar Airways. Veronica's other passion is modeling and acting.

In mid-August 2025, information appeared that Veronica was already at large. She posted a photo from the Philippines.

He was a suspect under Part 1 of Article 342 before the trial. He was ultimately convicted under Articles 328 and 329 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus.

Ivan was arrested on September 20, 2024. He was convicted several times in a row on administrative charges under Part 2 of Article 19. of the Code of Administrative Offenses within 24 hours . Ivan was released only on December 1 , 2024, after spending more than two months behind bars.