Vatslau Areshka, a man with a spine
- Salidarnast Belarus
- Mar 27
- 3 min read
In January this year, the political prisoner, renowned union activists turned 70.
It is the third time that Vatslau Areshka has his birthday behind bars. Like many other figures of the independent trade union movement in Belarus, Areshka was detained on April 19, 2022, and, nine months later, found guilty under three Articles of the Criminal Code and sentenced to 8 years of high security prison.
Calls to actions intended to harm national security of the Republic of Belarus, creation of an extremist entity or participation therein, fomenting animosity or discord – those were the charges against Vatslau. And in the eyes of the authorities, the extremist entity in question was the independent Union of Radio and Electronics Workers (REP) to which Areshka was affiliated.
Today’s political prisoner is also known as a contributor to the Belarusian culture; he engaged in journalism, literary, educational, and teaching activities.
Vasyl Zavadskyi, the REP President in 2020-2021, believes that his colleague would always put the interests of people and the country before all else:
“Vatslau is a sincere man committed to the notion of a thriving Motherland, the idea of cultural development of the State, development of all human faculties, and the unlocking of every human being’s full potential. He did not work to make some material gains for himself or anybody else. He was always thinking of his land and his people. To some, these words may sound like pompous exaggeration, but they were not when you applied them to Vatslau.
“In the course of our shared work in the Union, he was always calm, level-headed, had his own opinion on everything and was never afraid to staunchly defend it. And his arguments were always profound and well-grounded. His line of work meant that he could talk to a lot of people, learn what they thought about a lot of things – public opinion was always a matter of interest for him – and discuss his ideas among trade union activists.”
Another interlocutor of “Salidarnast” who shared the same cell in the pre-trial detention facility with Vatslau, also speaks very highly of him:
“He is a great erudite. Never fell in despair. He read a lot despite his weak eyes. And there was always this belief that the good would come out victorious emanating from him.”
Today, Areshka is doing his time in the penal colony No 22 in Ivantsevichy known as “Wolves’ Holes”. Vatslau’s colleagues biggest concern at the moment is his deteriorating health.
Vasyl Zavadsky says the Areshka’s eye condition is getting worse.
“The conditions he is facing now do not contribute to any improvements, of course”, he told “Salidarnast”. “As far as I know, he had been through the punitive isolation ward and other terrible things. And, as far as I can tell, some of those punishments were triggered simply by his inability to read what was required of him.
This makes a prisoner’s life harder, even if it’s hard enough to start with. Moreover, his weak eyes are not the only health problem Vatslau has, being a man of 70. Still, I hope he’ll be able to overcome it all because here you have a man with a spine, and make no mistake.”
On April 19, 2025, the campaign “Trade Unionism is not Extremism!” will run a Day of Action for Union Rights and Democracy in Belarus demanding the release of imprisoned Belarusian union leaders.
The campaign has been launched to focus the international community’s attention on the situation of workers’ rights in Belarus. The country faces police terror, torture, and persecution of all opponents to Lukashenka’s dictatorial regime, including trade union activists.
The campaign calls for the release of union and political prisoners, a stop to repressions against union activists, and the restoration of guarantees for legal operation of independent trade unions.
The campaign has been organized by the “Salidarnast” Association and the BKDP who provide support to union activists and the event will mark an anniversary of the pogroms perpetrated by Lukashenka’s regime against independent trade unions in 2022.