29 March 2024, Friday, 10:15
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Ai Weiwei Showed 4-Bit Mikalai Statkevich

Chinese artist Ai Weiwei presented a collection of 4-bit Instagram portraits of political activists from across the world.

Among them are: Belarusian opposition activist Mikalai Statkevich, defendants in the “swamp case” Sergei Udaltsov and Artiom Saviolov, Tibetan musician Shawo Tashi, former employee of the US National Security Agency Edward Snowden and others, Lenta.ru writes.

The collection also includes several representatives of the Central Asian countries: Rashad Ramasanov and Ilkin Rustamzade (Azerbaijan), Dilmurod Saidov (Uzbekistan), Rosa Tuletayeva (Kazakhstan).

Mikalai Statkevich
Photo: @AIWW / INSTAGRAM

Each portrait is provided with brief information about the most remarkable actions of the depicted person and data on his/her fate. Most of the characters in the collection by Ai Weiwei, are currently being held in detention or have recently been released from prison.

Ai Weiwei is a Chinese artist with reputation of a dissident. In 2011, he spent 81 days in a Chinese prison for tax evasion. The artist claimed that the case was fabricated against him because of his opposition views. British magazine ArtReview named Ai Weiwei the most influential person in the world of contemporary art.

It is to be recalled that Mikalai Statkevich is the only candidate in the 2010 presidential elections who was kept in prison till August 2015. He was sentenced to 6 years of imprisonment in May 2011 for organizing mass disorders on the Election Day. International human rights organizations acknowledged Statkevich a prisoner of conscience.

The politician began to serve his term in penal colony No.17 in Shklou, but after the conditions had been tightened, he was transferred to prison No.4 in Mahilyou for the folloing three years in January 2012. Statkevich returned to Shklou prison on 12 January 2015 and got two warnings for violating prison rules in the first two days of his stay there.

Mikalai Statkevich was tried in penal colony No.17 on May 4. The politician was transferred from the colony to prison No.4 in Mahilyou on May 6 for the rest of his term (1 year, 7 months and 15 days).

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