Belarus canceled the passports of the Nobel laureate and deported political prisoners

“This is another form of international pressure aimed at making life difficult for deported political prisoners outside the country. The authorities are severing our ties with Belarus, but it is a futile effort,” Byalatsky announced today.

He shared the Nobel Peace Prize in 2022 with human rights defenders of Ukraine and Russia.

This refers to the political prisoners who were recently released by the mediation of the USA, instead of which the sanctions against Minsk were eased.

By depriving them of their identity document, the authorities, according to human rights defenders, make it difficult for them to move, to get a new document, and to return home, effectively strengthening their exile.

“This is the continuation of the persecution,” said Svetlana Golovneva, a lawyer of the “Vyasna” human rights center founded by Byalyatsky.

The Belarusian authorities have not yet publicly commented on the cancellation of the passports.

On September 11, 2025, 51 political prisoners were released as a result of negotiations between President Alexander Lukashenko and the US delegation, many were immediately transferred abroad, in some cases without passports. The second group, 123 prisoners, left the country on December 13, 2025. some received only temporary certificates instead of official documents.
On March 19, 2026, Lukashenko pardoned 250 prisoners. 15 of them were transferred to Vilnius without passports.