Washington, D.C., December 14, 2025— The National Endowment for Democracy (NED) welcomes the release of more than 120 prisoners from Belarusian regime custody, including leading human rights and political figures, following U.S. diplomatic efforts led by Special Envoy John Coale.
Among those freed are prominent members of Belarus’ pro-democracy movement, including Nobel Prize Laureate and head of Belarus’ flagship Human Rights Center Viasna Ales Bialiatski; Maryna Zolatava, editor-in-chief of the country’s leading independent outlet TUT.by (now Zerkalo); and opposition leaders Viktar Babaryka and Maryia Kalesnikava.
“We welcome these releases and share the relief and joy felt by families, friends, and colleagues of Ales, Maryia, Maryna, Viktar, and all those who have endured unjust imprisonment for standing up for freedom,” said Damon Wilson, NED President and CEO. “We are grateful for the efforts of the Trump Administration and Special Envoy Coale in securing these releases. We also recognize the sustained advocacy of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and Belarusian human rights defenders on behalf of those unjustly detained. We hope these releases will bring attention to the many others who remain imprisoned for peaceful civic activity and the repressive environment in Belarus. At NED, we remain committed to supporting Belarusian aspirations for peace, dignity, and freedom.”
Following nationwide peaceful demonstrations in 2020 calling for respect for the will of the people in free and fair elections, greater accountability, and fundamental rights, the regime of Aliaksandr Lukashenka imprisoned thousands of journalists, pro-democracy activists, and opposition figures through arbitrary arrests and repeated detention. Despite today’s releases, more than 1,100 political prisoners remain in Belarusian regime custody, according to Human Rights Center Viasna.
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About the National Endowment for Democracy
NED is a private, nonprofit foundation dedicated to advancing freedom and democracy worldwide. Established in 1983 as part of President Reagan’s vision to foster an “infrastructure of democracy” with a bipartisan Congressional mandate, NED supports grassroots leaders striving for the freedom to think, speak, worship, engage politically, and support their families without fear. It mobilizes key pillars of American democracy, from political parties to business and labor, to support their counterparts abroad through the Core institutes that form the NED family: the International Republican Institute, the National Democratic Institute, the Center for International Private Enterprise, and the Solidarity Center.
