Defending the Right to Protest: Marfa Rabkova & Political Repression
23 April 2025
Organised by Nottingham Students for Scholars at Risk, this event addressed the ongoing efforts to support and secure the release of Marfa Rabkova, a Belarusian human rights defender and coordinator of Viasna's Volunteer Service. Marfa was arbitrarily detained on 17 September 2020, and has been imprisoned since, facing fabricated charges for her efforts in monitoring and documenting human rights violations in Belarus.
This session featured two speakers from Viasna, a Belarusian human rights group that provides support to victims of political repression and monitors human rights violations, who shared insights into the current situation in Belarus. Members of the Nottingham Scholars at Risk team also contributed to the discussion on Marfa's case and the global significance of safeguarding the freedom to protest.
The seminar was chaired by Aoife Nolan, Professor of International Human Rights Law / Director of the Human Rights Law Centre at the University of Nottingham.
You can watch a recording of the event here: