Maxim Aliaksandravič Znak (; born 4 September 1981) is a

Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

ian lawyer and politician, part of Viktar Babaryka's team, lawyer of

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya Sviatlana Hieorhiyeuna Tsikhanouskaya (; born 11 September 1982) is a Belarusian political activist. After standing as a candidate in the 2020 presidential election against the president Alexander Lukashenko, she has led the political opposit ...

, and a member of the presidium of the Coordination Council formed during the 2020–21 Belarusian protests in opposition to the rule of

Alexander Lukashenko Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko (also transliterated as Alyaksandr Ryhoravich Lukashenka; born 30 August 1954) is a Belarusian politician who has been the first and only president of Belarus since the office's establishment in 1994, making hi ...

. Along with fellow opposition leader Maria Kolesnikova, Znak actively participated in the demonstrations and protests against the Lukashenko government after

had left the country. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison by the Belarusian authorities. First press conference of the Coordination Council of Belarus

First press conference of the Coordination Council of Belarus

Childhood and education

Znak obtained his

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

Law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

from the Belarusian State University.

Legal career

Znak provided legal support for presidential candidate Viktar Babaryka, who was jailed in June 2020 during the Lukashenko 26-year presidency of Belarus, prior to the

2020 Belarusian presidential election Presidential elections were held in Belarus on Sunday, 9 August 2020. Early voting began on 4 August and ran until 8 August. Incumbent Alexander Lukashenko was announced by the Central Election Commission of Belarus, Central Election Commissi ...

. Babaryka had intended to contest the 2020 Belarus election before being rejected by election officials.

Coordination Council and detention

Znak is one of the members of the presidium of the Coordination Council of Belarus that aims to help coordinate a transition to democracy in Belarus. On 9 September 2020, he was abducted and detained by a gang of masked men wearing plain clothes. Prior to his detention, he was widely regarded as the last active member of the Coordination Council. He was detained by supporters of Lukashenko just two days after the forced deportation of his colleague and the former opposition leader Maria Kolesnikova. On 9 September, Znak had planned to attend a video press conference with Babaryka. He was kidnapped by masked men and did not attend the press conference. Znak's colleagues stated that he was detained in Minsk and that he had texted the word "masks" to them after his abduction. , the Coordination Council has been unable to contact Maxim Znak following his detention. He has been briefly described as a "missing person". On 9 November 2020 Znak's attorneys announced that his detention had been extended to 9 January 2021. As of 21 January 2021, he has remained in SIZO No. 1 in

Minsk Minsk (, ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach (Berezina), Svislach and the now subterranean Nyamiha, Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the administra ...

. On February 12, Znak and fellow Coordination Council member

Maria Kalesnikava Maria Kalesnikava (Marya Alyaksandrauna Kalesnikava / Maria Aleksandrovna Kolesnikova; born 24 April 1982) is a Belarusian professional flutist and political activist. In 2020, she headed Viktar Babaryka's electoral campaign during the presid ...

were charged with “conspiracy to seize state power in an unconstitutional manner” and “establishing and leading an extremist organization. On 9 March, Znak's attorney announced that his pre-trial detention had been extended through 9 May 2021. Starting 4 August 2021, after almost 11 months in custody, Znak and Kalesnikava stood trial behind closed doors in the Minsk Regional Court. They faced up to 12 years in prison. Both pleaded not guilty. Throughout the investigation and trial, the details of the charges were not publicly disclosed. The attorneys of Kalesnikava and Znak were under a nondisclosure agreement. Znak explained that the court sessions were closed because the authorities did not want the public to know that 'the charges are not reality based'. On 6 September 2021, Znak was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says that it has more than ten million members a ...

condemned the sentence. On September 21, 2021, Znak and Kalesnikava appealed against their sentences to the State Supreme Court.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Znak, Maxim 1981 births 2020s missing person cases Belarusian lawyers Belarusian dissidents Political prisoners according to Viasna Human Rights Centre Belarusian State University alumni Politicians from Minsk Political prisoners in Belarus Living people

Childhood and education

Legal career

Coordination Council and detention

See also

References