Marfa Rabkova | |
---|---|
Марфа Рабкова | |
Born | 6 January 1995 |
Nationality | Belarusian |
Citizenship | Belarusian |
Organization | Viasna Human Rights Centre |
Known for | 2021 imprisonments |
Marfa Rabkova ( Belarusian and Russian: Марфа Рабкова; born 6 January 1995) is a Belarusian human rights activist who works for the Viasna Human Rights Centre. In 2020 she was arrested by the Belarusian authorities for her activism and sent to the pre-trial prison SIZO No. 1. In 2021 she was awarded the Homo Homini Award together with three other arrested Belarusian human rights activists.
Marfa (Maria) Rabkova was born in 1995. [1] She attended the Belarusian State Pedagogical University but was forced to withdraw after being detained on a march near a university building. [2] She then enrolled at the A. Kuleshov Mogilev State University but claimed that she was unable to complete her studies and find a job due to pressure from the authorities. [2] In 2017 she entered the European Humanities University in Vilnius, Lithuania. [2] In 2019 she became a manager of the volunteers' network of Viasna Human Rights Centre in Belarus. [2]
In 2020 Rabkova volunteered with the Viasna Human Rights Centre over the course of the 2020 Belarusian presidential election. [3] At the start of the mass protests, she began to document evidence of torture and abuse by the Belarusian authorities. [3] She was detained on 17 September 2020. [1] On 19 September 2021 she was transferred to SIZO No. 1 in Minsk. [1] Several Belarusian human rights groups recognized her as a political prisoner. [1] International human rights organizations Amnesty International, Front Line Defenders, and the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders demanded her immediate release. [1] Bundestag member Agnieszka Brugger became her "godmother". [4] In the pre-trial prison her health worsened; she complained about abdominal pain, tooth pain, and inflammation of the lymph nodes but did not get adequate medical treatment. [5] According to her husband, she lost 20 kg in prison, contracted COVID-19, and started to experience fainting and low blood pressure. [6] She also wasn't allowed to attend her father's funeral. [6]
Initially, Rabkova was charged under article 293 of the Criminal Code (part 3, "Training or other preparation of persons for participation in mass riots, or financing of this activity"). [1] On 11 February 2021 she was charged with two other articles — 130 ("Incitement to hatred") and 285 (part 2, "Participation in a criminal organization"). [1] Based on these charges, she faced the possibility of being imprisoned for up to 12 years. [1]
In 2021 Rabkova was awarded the Homo Homini Award together with three other arrested Belarusian human rights activists. [7]
On September 6, 2022, Rabkova was sentenced to 15 years in a general-security penal colony and a fine of 22,400 Belarusian rubles (more than $8,800). On February 28, 2023, the Supreme Court changed the final sentence for Rabkova into 14 years and 9 months of imprisonment in a general-security penal colony. [8]
Marfa Rabkova | |
---|---|
Марфа Рабкова | |
Born | 6 January 1995 |
Nationality | Belarusian |
Citizenship | Belarusian |
Organization | Viasna Human Rights Centre |
Known for | 2021 imprisonments |
Marfa Rabkova ( Belarusian and Russian: Марфа Рабкова; born 6 January 1995) is a Belarusian human rights activist who works for the Viasna Human Rights Centre. In 2020 she was arrested by the Belarusian authorities for her activism and sent to the pre-trial prison SIZO No. 1. In 2021 she was awarded the Homo Homini Award together with three other arrested Belarusian human rights activists.
Marfa (Maria) Rabkova was born in 1995. [1] She attended the Belarusian State Pedagogical University but was forced to withdraw after being detained on a march near a university building. [2] She then enrolled at the A. Kuleshov Mogilev State University but claimed that she was unable to complete her studies and find a job due to pressure from the authorities. [2] In 2017 she entered the European Humanities University in Vilnius, Lithuania. [2] In 2019 she became a manager of the volunteers' network of Viasna Human Rights Centre in Belarus. [2]
In 2020 Rabkova volunteered with the Viasna Human Rights Centre over the course of the 2020 Belarusian presidential election. [3] At the start of the mass protests, she began to document evidence of torture and abuse by the Belarusian authorities. [3] She was detained on 17 September 2020. [1] On 19 September 2021 she was transferred to SIZO No. 1 in Minsk. [1] Several Belarusian human rights groups recognized her as a political prisoner. [1] International human rights organizations Amnesty International, Front Line Defenders, and the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders demanded her immediate release. [1] Bundestag member Agnieszka Brugger became her "godmother". [4] In the pre-trial prison her health worsened; she complained about abdominal pain, tooth pain, and inflammation of the lymph nodes but did not get adequate medical treatment. [5] According to her husband, she lost 20 kg in prison, contracted COVID-19, and started to experience fainting and low blood pressure. [6] She also wasn't allowed to attend her father's funeral. [6]
Initially, Rabkova was charged under article 293 of the Criminal Code (part 3, "Training or other preparation of persons for participation in mass riots, or financing of this activity"). [1] On 11 February 2021 she was charged with two other articles — 130 ("Incitement to hatred") and 285 (part 2, "Participation in a criminal organization"). [1] Based on these charges, she faced the possibility of being imprisoned for up to 12 years. [1]
In 2021 Rabkova was awarded the Homo Homini Award together with three other arrested Belarusian human rights activists. [7]
On September 6, 2022, Rabkova was sentenced to 15 years in a general-security penal colony and a fine of 22,400 Belarusian rubles (more than $8,800). On February 28, 2023, the Supreme Court changed the final sentence for Rabkova into 14 years and 9 months of imprisonment in a general-security penal colony. [8]