human rights defender
human rights defender
1967
Man
Urban
In prison (sentenced)
Aleh Khamenka is a musician and the leader of the Palats band.
He was arrested on June 30, 2025. A criminal case was initiated against him for collaborating with independent Belarusian media outlets that are on the list of so-called "extremist organizations" (the specific article of the Criminal Code is currently unknown).
Khamenka is a musician, composer, and radio host. He founded the folk-rock band Palats in 1992. The band has released six studio albums, and Khamenka has performed solo and recorded audiobooks. In 2008, he participated in the national selection for Eurovision. After 2020, Palats remained in Belarus and performed occasionally.
On March 4, 2026, the Minsk City Court sentenced Oleg Khomenko. He was found guilty under Article 361-4 of the Criminal Code (“assisting extremist activity”) for cooperating with the editorial team of Belarusian Radio Racyja.
He was sentenced to three years in a general-regime penal colony and fined more than 20,000 rubles.
Jun 25, 2025
3 years in prison
Latitude: 53.79882563529939
Longitude: 27.60385816741831
Minsk district
Pre-trial detention center No. 1. 223016, Navadvorski selsavet, 143/4, v. Pashkovichy, Minsk rajon, Minsk voblast
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Aleh Khamenka is a musician and the leader of the Palats band.
He was arrested on June 30, 2025. A criminal case was initiated against him for collaborating with independent Belarusian media outlets that are on the list of so-called "extremist organizations" (the specific article of the Criminal Code is currently unknown).
Khamenka is a musician, composer, and radio host. He founded the folk-rock band Palats in 1992. The band has released six studio albums, and Khamenka has performed solo and recorded audiobooks. In 2008, he participated in the national selection for Eurovision. After 2020, Palats remained in Belarus and performed occasionally.
On March 4, 2026, the Minsk City Court sentenced Oleg Khomenko. He was found guilty under Article 361-4 of the Criminal Code (“assisting extremist activity”) for cooperating with the editorial team of Belarusian Radio Racyja.
He was sentenced to three years in a general-regime penal colony and fined more than 20,000 rubles.
Latitude: 53.79882563529939
Longitude: 27.60385816741831
3 years in prison