Belarusian-speaking Orthodox man from Grodno declared a terrorist and tried for "inciting hatred"
Denis Adamin seems to have been targeted for comments on Telegram.
Denis Adamin. Photo from his VKontakte page
Denis Adamin is 45 years old. He is from Grodno. He has a wife and a minor daughter.
In the summer of 2020, Adamin registered as an individual entrepreneur. His main activity was collecting mushrooms, berries, and herbs.
The man is an Orthodox believer. In February 2020, he attended a meeting dedicated to theological education for laypeople, held at the Orthodox club at the Holy Protection Cathedral in Grodno.
On social media, Denis often reflected on spiritual laws, called freedom a fundamental human need, and sharply criticized the actions of the Moscow Patriarchate. He wrote on social media in Belarusian.
Denis Adamin is now being tried under Article 130 of the Criminal Code — "inciting hatred." Most likely, his comments on Telegram were the reason for the persecution.
Denis's Telegram account was unprotected, registered to his phone number, and signed with his own name.
The KGB included Adamin in the "list of terrorists."
Mass political repressions in the country began after 2020. At that time, Alexander Lukashenka lost to Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya but did not cede power to her, instead forcing her to leave the country. This triggered mass popular protests involving millions of people. In response, the authorities began arrests.
According to estimates by the "Belpol" security forces association and human rights activists, the names of at least 10,050 people who have been subjected to politically motivated criminal cases are known. In total, various political repressions (criminal cases, administrative cases, dismissals, searches, forced emigration) have affected hundreds of thousands of Belarusians.
The Belarusian authorities consider "extremism" to be the demand for free elections with transparent vote counting, as well as virtually any criticism of the authorities, pro-Russian historical narratives, expressions of solidarity with Ukraine, and anti-war speeches.