Mikola Statkevich
Encyclopedia
Mikola Statkevich is a Belarus
ian politician and presidential candidate at the 2010 election.
Mikola Statkevich was born in the Slutsk raion
into a family of school teachers. He is a descendant of the Statkewicz noble family.
Statkevich graduated from a military engineering school in Minsk and served in the Soviet
antiaircraft defense in the Arctic region.
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 has left the Communist Party of the USSR as a protest against a brutal Soviet military action against the democratic pro-independence opposition in the Lithuanian SSR
.
In 1993 Statkevich was actively protesting against Belarus joining a collective defence treaty with Azerbaijan
and Armenia
that were at war at a time, in order 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.
He then became one of the leaders of the Belarusian Social Democratic Party (People's Assembly)
, including the party's chairman since 1995.
In 2005 Statkevich was sentenced to three years of labour for organising mass protests against the 2004 referendum in Belarus that has lifted the constitutional limit on presidential terms and allowed president Aliaksandr Lukashenka to again participate in presidential elections. Amnesty International
has declared Mikola Statkevich Prisoner of conscience
. He was then set free in 2007 following an amnesty.
In 2010 Mikola Statkevich was one of many democratic candidates at the presidential election. After the crackdown of the opposition demonstration he was arrested and put in prison. On 26 May 2011, he was sentenced to 6 years in a medium security penal colony.
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
ian politician and presidential candidate at the 2010 election.
Mikola Statkevich was born in the Slutsk raion
Slutsk Raion
Slutsk Raion is a second-level administrative subdivision of Belarus in the Minsk Region....
into a family of school teachers. He is a descendant of the Statkewicz noble family.
Statkevich graduated from a military engineering school in Minsk and served in the Soviet
Soviet Army
The Soviet Army is the name given to the main part of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union between 1946 and 1992. Previously, it had been known as the Red Army. Informally, Армия referred to all the MOD armed forces, except, in some cases, the Soviet Navy.This article covers the Soviet Ground...
antiaircraft defense in the Arctic region.
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 has left the Communist Party of the USSR as a protest against a brutal Soviet military action against the democratic pro-independence opposition in the Lithuanian SSR
Lithuanian SSR
The Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Lithuanian SSR, was one of the republics that made up the former Soviet Union...
.
In 1993 Statkevich was actively protesting against Belarus joining a collective defence treaty with Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
and Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
that were at war at a time, in order 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
Doctor of Science
Doctor of Science , usually abbreviated Sc.D., D.Sc., S.D. or Dr.Sc., is an academic research degree awarded in a number of countries throughout the world. In some countries Doctor of Science is the name used for the standard doctorate in the sciences, elsewhere the Sc.D...
dissertation.
He then became one of the leaders of the Belarusian Social Democratic Party (People's Assembly)
Belarusian Social Democratic Party (People's Assembly)
The Belarusian Social Democratic Party is unregistered political party in Belarus which opposes the administration of President Alexander Lukashenko....
, including the party's chairman since 1995.
In 2005 Statkevich was sentenced to three years of labour for organising mass protests against the 2004 referendum in Belarus that has lifted the constitutional limit on presidential terms and allowed president Aliaksandr Lukashenka to again participate in presidential elections. Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
has declared Mikola Statkevich Prisoner of conscience
Prisoner of conscience
Prisoner of conscience is a term defined in Peter Benenson's 1961 article "The Forgotten Prisoners" often used by the human rights group Amnesty International. It can refer to anyone imprisoned because of their race, religion, or political views...
. He was then set free in 2007 following an amnesty.
In 2010 Mikola Statkevich was one of many democratic candidates at the presidential election. After the crackdown of the opposition demonstration he was arrested and put in prison. On 26 May 2011, he was sentenced to 6 years in a medium security penal colony.