Blogger and dissident Siarhei Tsikhanouski , 48, was detained in Belarus in May 2020, after he had announced to challenge the country's ruler, Alexander Lukashenko , in the upcoming presidential elections. In December 2021, Tsikhanouski was convicted to 18 years in prison, in part for organizing "mass unrest."

After his arrest his wife, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya , took his place and challenged Lukashenko as presidential candidate. Despite allegations of large-scale vote-rigging, Lukashenko was declared the winner of the election in August 2020. This triggered unprecedented mass protests across the country. They were violently suppressed, and thousands of government critics were arrested or fled into exile.…