On September 19, 2025, Amsterdam saw the International Solidarity Festival organized by the Netherland’s largest trade union, the FNV. The event brought together union activists from over 15 countries, including Surinam, India, Uganda, the USA, Kenya, Columbia, Ghana, Nigeria, and Belarus.

The political prisoner Vatslau Areshka has gone almost completely blind yet he is unable to gain disability status in prison

On 17 September, an online meeting was held between recently released former political prisoner and leader of the Belarusian Congress of Democratic Trade Unions (BKDP), Aliaksandr Yarashuk, and ILO Director-General Gilbert Houngbo together with Maria Helena André, Director of the ILO Bureau for Workers’ Activities (ACTRAV). The meeting was also attended by Sergeyus Glovackas, Desk Officer for Eastern Europe and Central Asia at ACTRAV.

On 16 September in Vilnius, a three-hour meeting took place between recently released Belarusian trade union leaders — Aliaksandr Yarashuk, Chair of the Belarusian Congress of Democratic Trade Unions (BKDP), and Hennadz Fiadynich, former head of the Radio and Electronics Industry Workers’ Union (REP) — and the General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), Luc Triangle.

In their interview to “Salidarnast”, the two union leaders speak of what was most difficult for them in jail, why other prisoners would address by their patronymics, how they managed to survive punitive isolation cells, and why the Belarusian authorities have taken their passports away.

On 11 September, 52 political prisoners were released in Belarus. Among them were two key figures of the independent trade union movement: Aliaksandr Yarashuk, Chair of the Belarusian Congress of Democratic Trade Unions (BKDP), and Hennadz Fiadynich, former head of the Belarusian Radio and Electronics Industry Workers’ Union (REP).

The Belarusian Congress of Democratic Trade Unions (BKDP) submits a report to the UN Human Rights Council for the 50th session of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR). The document speaks of the complete liquidation of independent trade unions in Belarus, repression against more than 70 trade union activists and the systematic use of forced labour.

On August 13, at the age of 77, our brother and friend, member of the Free Metalworkers’ Union (SPM) and editor of the union bulletin Workers’ Solidarity, Mikalai Galko, passed away.

On International Youth Day, it is important to talk about how wars and repression affect young people. In Belarus, an entire generation has grown up under the control of propaganda and restrictions, yet young people still have a chance to defend their right to freedom and a future without violence.

Why independent trade unions regard it as a disguised form of forced labour

In the first half of 2025, political rapprochement between Belarus and Myanmar reached a new level. Both countries — governed by military or authoritarian regimes, under international sanctions, and widely criticized for systematic human rights violations — are enthusiastically expanding economic, diplomatic, and even military cooperation.

On June 16–17, 2025, Stockholm hosted a Forum on “Women’s Empowerment and Democracy for Belarus 2025” – an international platform bringing together female activists, researchers, politicians, and human rights defenders in order to discuss the role of Belarusian women in the struggle for democracy, dignity, and justice

The participants discussed measures proposed by the ILO Governing Body for the implementation of Article 33 of the ILO Constitution that has been applied to the Government of Belarus for violations of the right to freedom of association and the failure to comply with the Commission of Inquiry’s recommendations.

The Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, a part of the UN Human Rights Council’s Special Procedures, has issued a conclusion on the case of the Belarusian political prisoner Aliaksandr Kashpul.

On the sidelines of the International Labour Conference, representatives of the Belarusian Congress of Democratic Trade Unions (BKDP) met with the Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO), Gilbert Houngbo. The meeting was attended by Maksim Pazniakou, Acting President of the BKDP, and Siarhei Antusevich, Deputy President, who recently regained his freedom and left Belarus after serving a politically motivated sentence.

June 5, 2025, Geneva. An action of solidarity with the independent trade union of Belarus took place in the Nations Square in front of the UN building. Under the slogan “Bring Freedom of Association Back to Belarus!”, the participants demanded to stop the repressions without delay, release all imprisoned union leaders, and restore workers’ right to freedom of association.

We need to acknowledge a loss that touches not only Belarusian trade unionists, but the global labour movement as a whole. Dan Gallin passed away few days ago. He was a committed organizer, a mentor to many, and a friend to those who needed solidarity most.

A coalition of Belarusian human rights organizations and the Belarusian Congress of Democratic Trade Unions (BKDP) has submitted a comprehensive report to the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus. The document outlines a wide range of systemic labor rights violations — from the liquidation of independent trade unions to forced labor and discrimination. The authors urge the United Nations and the ILO to intensify pressure on the Belarusian authorit

June 2, 2025, is the opening day of the 113-th Interntioanl Labour Conference in Geneva. There, delegates representing governments, employers, and workers of 187 ILO member-states will discuss important issues in the world of labour: potential new international standards protecting workers from occupational biological hazards, decent work in platform economy, and innovative approaches to facilitating the formalization of informal economy.

On April 16, 2025, it was announced that the prestigious Arthur Svensson International Prize for Trade Union Rights has been awarded this year to Aliaksandr Yarashuk — Chairman of the Belarusian Congress of Democratic Trade Unions (BKDP), Vice President of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), and a member of the Governing Body of the International Labour Organization (ILO).