On the deteriorating situation of political prisoners in Belarus, in particular the case of Aliaksandra Pulinovich

B100325/2026

European Parliament resolution on the deteriorating situation of political prisoners in Belarus, in particular the case of Aliaksandra Pulinovich

(2026/2766(RSP))

– having regard to its numerous previous resolutions on Belarus since August 2020,

– having regard to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child,

– having regard to Rule 150(5) of its Rules of Procedure,

whereas then 16-year-old pupil Aliaksandra Pulinovich was detained in January 2024 and later sentenced to 10 years and 3 months in prison on politically motivated charges;

whereas, during her pre-trial detention, she was repeatedly held in isolation and added to the regime’s ‘terrorist’ and ‘extremist’ lists; whereas, in April 2026, state television broadcast a film smearing her and other teenagers as having plotted attacks on police and prosecution offices;

whereas Aliaksandra Pulinovich‘s detention and prosecution breach the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child;

whereas about 868 political prisoners remain in prison in Belarus; whereas, since the fraudulent presidential election of 9 August 2020, the regime has been exercising systematic repression against pro-democratic forces, activists, human rights defenders, civil society, independent media, and trade unions, subjecting detainees to ill-treatment and the denial of medical care, with several dying in custody;

whereas the recent forced deportations of released political prisoners and the repression of their relatives in Belarus amounts to an additional form of political persecution;

1. Condemns the politically motivated conviction and imprisonment of Aliaksandra Pulinovich for acts allegedly committed when she was a 16-year-old child and urges the Belarusian authorities to comply with their obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child;

2. Calls for the immediate and unconditional release of Aliaksandra Pulinovich and of all political prisoners in Belarus, and for all charges against them to be dropped and their convictions quashed;

3. Demands that the authorities guarantee all detainees access to health care, lawyers and family members, end incommunicado detention and ill-treatment, and investigate deaths in custody and allegations of torture;

4. Urges the Belarusian authorities to halt the systematic repression, including the transnational repression of exiled Belarusians, the forced deportations of released political prisoners, renewed repression against them and their relatives, and introduce a moratorium on the death penalty; calls on the Council and the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative to strengthen sanctions against those responsible for the repression;

5. Reiterates its call on the EU and its Member States to support the political prisoners and their families by seizing every opportunity to request their immediate release, summoning the regime’s ambassadors to ask for proof of their condition and location, granting humanitarian visas, providing rehabilitation, practical and financial support;

6. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative, the Council, the Commission, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the European Court of Human Rights, the Council of Europe, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, and the Belarusian de facto authorities.