Alena Kavalenka: Lukashenka not going to rehabilitate political prisoners

The wife of the political prisoner Syarhei Kavalenka does not expect “anything good” from the dictator.

“Decent people are staying in prisons, and rascals are released by us, under pressure or without pressure,” said Alyaksandr Lukashenka in his address, after he ordered deputies to work out a law on amnesty by July 3. Is it possible that political prisoners would be amnestied as well? The wife of Syarhei Kavalenka, Alena Kavalenka, answers this question to Radio Svoboda in the following way:

“I do not expect anything good from Lukashenka. He deliberately avoided the topic of political prisoners’ release, and he deliberately made an extremely negative statement about the political prisoners. It is clear that this problem is very painful for him, and that pressure is being exerted on him because of political prisoners, and he cannot but think about that, but he does not want to show that. It is probable that with the help of the amnesty of July 3 he decided to solve the problem of political prisoners. And at the same time, he wants to make that without rehabilitation of political prisoners, for them to be released without a right to participate in the election. So an unprecedented pressure is being exerted on the political prisoners now. In particular, on my Sergei. He is being forced to write a petition for pardon, through provocations, as they want to present it as he had committed some offences, and to crush his will. I certainly hope for an amnesty, but I do not have illusions about what is happening in the country around the political prisoners and my Sergei.”