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Crisis in Belarus

Belarusian court sentences ex-presidential candidate Tikhanovskaya to 15 years in absentia

Svetlana Tikhanovskaya was found guilty of high treason, conspiracy to seize state power, of setting up and managing an extremist unit, and making public calls to seize power

Svetlana Tikhanovskaya Kenzo Tribouillard/Pool Photo via AP

Svetlana Tikhanovskaya

© Kenzo Tribouillard/Pool Photo via AP

MINSK, March 6. /TASS/. The Minsk City Court has sentenced in absentia former Belarusian presidential candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya to 15 years in a general penal colony, TASS reports from the courtroom.

Tikhanovskaya was "sentenced to 15 years' imprisonment with a fine of 800 base amounts to the tune of 29,600 [Belarusian] rubles (about 787,000 rubles, $10,407) to be served in a general penal colony ," judge Pyotr Orlov read out the verdict.

Namely, Tikhanovskaya was found guilty of high treason, conspiracy to seize state power, of setting up and managing an extremist unit, and making public calls to seize power.

In addition to Tikhanovskaya, in-absentia proceedings had been launched against members of the so-called Coordination Council of the Belarusian opposition Pavel Latushko, Olga Kovalkova, Sergey Dylevsky and Maria Moroz. Pavel Latushko was sentenced to 18 years in a maximum security prison, while Olga Kovalkova Maria Moroz and Sergey Dylevsky were sentenced to 12 years in a general penal colony.

The trial in absentia of Coordination Council members began in Minsk on January 17. All of the defendants were charged with conspiracy to seize power, creation of and participation in an extremist organization, calls for actions aimed at harming national security and inciting social hatred and discord.

Tikhanovskaya, according to the official results of the August 2020 presidential elections, came in second. She did not recognize the results and soon left the country. Tikhanovskaya's supporters created a Coordination Council, which declared its goal of ensuring the transfer of power through new elections.

Belarusian law-enforcement agencies had previously applied to the competent authorities of foreign countries for assistance in extraditing Tikhanovskaya and some other defendants, but to no avail.

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