Belarus Seeks Arrest And Return Of Two Christian Freedom Defenders

by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Europe Bureau Chief

MOSCOW/MINSK/BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – Authorities in Belarus have launched criminal cases against two Christian religious freedom defenders living abroad and are seeking their arrest and return through Russia’s federal arrest system, rights activists confirmed.

Advocacy group Forum 18 told Worthy News that the two Belarusian Christians, Protestant preacher Sergiy Melyanets and Orthodox theologian Natallia Vasilevich, were added to Russia’s Federal Wanted List at the request of authorities in neighboring Belarus, a close ally of Moscow.

Belarus launched a criminal case against Melyanets in January and against Vasilevich in April, but authorities have not disclosed the charges or publicly explained why they are being pursued.

Both Christians believe their cases may be linked to their advocacy for fellow believers as well as independent media or anti-war activities that authorities have branded “extremist,” Worthy News learned.

BELARUS TARGETS CHRISTIANS

Forum 18 said investigators refused to explain the cases, with one official hanging up when questioned about Melyanets.

The preacher fled Belarus with his family for Poland in 2024 after authorities detained him while he was attending the trial of journalist Igor Korney in Minsk to offer prayerful support.

Melyanets was reportedly sentenced to 13 days of administrative detention and then another 12 days before being released. He subsequently fled Belarus with his family.

Before leaving the country, Melyanets regularly attended trials of opposition activists and others targeted by authorities to pray for and encourage them.

PREACHER FLEES BELARUS

“After 2020, I asked myself: how can I help people who are in prison?” Melyanets recalled. “I started visiting courts so that people who were there because of repression could feel supported, see that they were being prayed for, that they were being remembered.”

Melyanets said police began questioning his parents about him in January and that he suspects the new criminal investigation concerns alleged support for organizations Belarusian authorities have branded “extremist,” including interviews he gave to independent media.

“They want me and my family to be in fear,” Melyanets added in remarks seen by Worthy News. “But I continue to do what my Christian conscience leads me to do.”

The other wanted Christian, Vasilevich, has lived outside Belarus since 2015 and last visited the country in 2020. She is an Orthodox theologian and moderator of Christian Vision, a religious freedom group established amid protests following the disputed 2020 presidential election.

CHRISTIAN VISION TARGETED

Christian Vision documents violations of freedom of religion or belief and other human rights. Belarusian authorities blocked its website and branded its social media channels “extremist.”

In April 2025, Belarus’s KGB security service declared Christian Vision and its online activities “extremist.” The Interior Ministry subsequently added the group to its list of “extremist” organizations.

Vasilevich said she had received no official notification about the criminal case against her. She suggested it could be connected to Christians Against War, a project established by Christian Vision activists following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

“I don’t know which Criminal Code Article they are using, whether I’m a suspect or I’ve been charged, what has caused this and why Vitebsk Regional Police are conducting the investigation,” Vasilevich said in comments shared with Worthy News.

CHRISTIANS AGAINST WAR

Russia designated Christians Against War a “foreign agent” on March 27, about two weeks before Vasilevich was added to the Russian wanted list at Belarus’s request.

Both Christians risk arrest and possible transfer to Belarus if they enter Russia or other states cooperating closely with Minsk on wanted persons, including Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, Forum 18 warned.

Christian Vision said the cases are part of a broader campaign, estimating that at least two dozen Belarusian believers, including several clergy members from different denominations, are wanted by Russia on what the group views as “politically motivated grounds.”

Forum 18 also approached Deputy Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs Sergei Gerasimenya in Minsk about the cases. “I will give no commentaries,” he reportedly responded before ending the call.

The cases come amid a wider crackdown by the government of longtime Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko against political opponents, independent media, human rights activists and devout Christians perceived as challenging his power base, activists said.

Belarusian authorities have defended actions against opposition-linked organizations as necessary to combat “extremism,” while rights advocates say such legislation is being used to suppress peaceful dissent and devout Christians.

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