Mikałaj Statkevič

Mikola Viktaravich Statkevich (, ; born 12 August 1956) is a Belarusian politician, and opposition leader who was a presidential candidate at the 2010 Belarusian presidential election. Since 31 May 2020 he was held in prison by Belarusian authorities. Viasna Human Rights Centre recognized him as a political prisoner. On 14 December 2021, Statkevich was sentenced to 14 years in prison. He was released on 11 September 2025 as part of a deal between the Belarusian government and the United States, but he refused to be deported to Lithuania and was returned to the penal colony. Following a stroke, he was again released on 19 February 2026.

Early life and career Mikola Viktaravich Statkevich was born in Liadna near Slutsk into a family of school teachers. He is a member of the noble family (of the Kościesza coat of arms),

During the German occupation of Belarus in World War II, his father (Viktar Paulavich Statkevich) and grandfather (Paul Statkevich) participated in the Belarusian partisan movement, engaging in sabotage against German authorities.

In the early 1990s, Statkevich was one of the leaders of the Belarusian Militarymen Association, a pro-independence union of Soviet officers from Belarus. In 1991 Statkevich left the Communist Party of the Soviet Union as a protest against the January Events, a crackdown by the Soviet military on democratic activists in Lithuania.

Political career In 1993 Statkevich was actively protesting against Belarus joining a collective defence treaty with Azerbaijan and Armenia that were at war at a time, to prevent Belarusian soldiers serving in military conflicts outside the country. For this Statkevich has been dismissed from the army shortly before the scheduled presentation of his Doctor of Science dissertation.

Statkevich was one of many democratic candidates who ran in the 2010 Belarusian presidential election. After a crackdown on opposition demonstrations, he was arrested and imprisoned. On 26 May 2011, he was sentenced to 6 years in a medium security penal colony. Amnesty International reported in July 2012 that Statkevich had been moved to a "punishment cell" after refusing to sign a confession. He was later released from imprisonment but disappeared in early 2017 after announcing a planned demonstration in central Minsk. He was again released by authorities after they violently suppressed the rally.

On 31 May 2020, he was arrested on his way to a rally where signatures for Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya were being gathered. He was sentenced to 15 days for participating in an unsanctioned protest. This sentence was extended two more times, and he was tried again on 29 June for organizing unrest. Viasna Human Rights Centre called the accusations politically motivated and demanded the immediate release of Statkevich.

Disappearance Statkevich disappeared from prison on 9 February 2023, after sending a letter to his wife. Statkevich was later followed by Ihar Losik and Viktar Babaryka, who both also disappeared from prison. His lawyers have also been barred from reaching him, with authorities claiming that he had not applied for legal assistance. A report by rapporteurs of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said that Statkevich's disappearance from prison was "potentially" an enforced disappearance.

According to the OHCHR reporters, "multiple sources" have claimed that Statkevich's disappearance is a cover-up for his death. These reports have circulated since late November 2023.

Release and rearrest Statkevich was released from prison and deported to Lithuania on 11 September 2025, following a meeting between John Coale, representing U.S. President Donald Trump, and Lukashenko. Upon arriving at the border, he refused to leave Belarus. For a while, he remained in the no man's land, but then Belarusian security operatives took him in the direction of the Belarusian border crossing and, according to the unnamed "credible sources", he was returned to the penal colony at Hlybokaye. Lukashenka confirmed that Statkevich was brought back to prison. Statkevich was again released and sent home on 19 February 2026 after suffering a stroke a month earlier.

Awards and recognition In December 2020, Statkevich was named among the representatives of the democratic Belarusian opposition, honored with the Sakharov Prize by the European Parliament.