Jailed Belarusian protest leader ‘out of intensive care’

Doctors still not saying what’s wrong with anti-Lukashenko activist

Maria Kolesnikova was sentenced to 11 years in prison for role in protests against Lukashenko (file photo) (Belta/AFP/Getty)

Jailed Belarusian opposition figure Maria Kolesnikova has left intensive care and her condition is improving, her political allies said on Thursday.

The 40-year-old protester was rushed to hospital earlier this week, taking her from the penal colony in which she had been serving her 11 year sentence for her role in leading marches against President Alexander Lukashenko.

Doctors have remained quiet about Ms Kolesnikova’s diagnosis after she underwent an undisclosed surgical procedure. Reuters reported her allies said they heard unconfirmed claims that she had a perforated ulcer.

Her father Alexander Kolesnikov was told at the hospital that her appetite was normal following the surgery, according to the Telegram account of Viktor Babariko, an ally and jailed opposition politician.

“[Maria] had breakfast with yogurt and porridge. She was visited by a doctor from the colony, who assured her that after being discharged from the hospital, Maria would be provided with proper conditions and care,” a post said.

Mr Kolesnikov on Wednesday said he was not allowed to see his daughter and a police officer was present during his meeting with the doctor.

A blindfolded feminist activist holds a photograph of Kolesnikova during protests against police violence in Minsk (AFP/Getty)

Ms Kolesnikova has been in custody since September 2020, when she tore up her passport at the border to prevent her forced expulsion from Belarus amid massive protests challenging the reelection of Mr Lukashenko, the authoritarian with close ties to Moscow who has led the country for nearly 30 years.

Belarus was shaken by massive protests after the disputed August 2020 re-election of Lukashenko, which the opposition and the West denounced as a rigged sham.

Authorities responded to the demonstrations with a massive crackdown that saw more than 35,000 people arrested and thousands beaten by police.

Additional reporting by agencies