Political prisoner released by Lukashenko disappears after refusing to leave Belarus
Photo: Nikolay Statkevich (spring96.org)
The leader of the People’s Community party, Nikolay Statkevich, who was recently released by dictator Alexander Lukashenko, has disappeared. Earlier, he had refused to leave Belarus, this was reported at a press conference of former political prisoners in Vilnius, according to Radio Svoboda.
Earlier, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya’s advisor, Denis Kuchinsky, said that when Statkevich was being taken to Lithuania, he "practically broke down the door, jumped off the bus, and ran back into Belarus."
He spent several hours near the border on the Belarusian side, which was recorded by surveillance cameras. His wife, American diplomats, and several escorts tried to convince him to leave the country, but their efforts were unsuccessful. The Lithuanian side confirmed that Statkevich did not cross the border.
At the same time, on September 11, Belarusian propaganda Telegram channels claimed that Statkevich had supposedly crossed into Lithuania, but by the next morning, they began reporting his "disappearance."
One of the recently released political prisoners, People’s Community activist Sergey Sparysh, said he saw Statkevich on September 11 in the KGB prison, where he was in "excellent moral condition."
However, Sparysh expressed serious concern about his health and urged politicians, including US President Donald Trump, to ensure that Statkevich could live normally in Belarus and communicate with his family and associates. According to Sparysh, Statkevich is convinced that the true leader of Belarus cannot live outside the country.
It is known that Statkevich suffers from heart disease, chronic bronchitis, has had COVID-19 several times, and developed pneumonia while in prison. He spent more than 2.5 years in solitary confinement.
Release of political prisoners
On September 11, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda said that the self-proclaimed president of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, had released more than 50 political prisoners.
According to Nausėda, at that time, all of the released political prisoners were already on Lithuanian territory.
