They ban books to silence voices. We bring those voices back.
- There are three types of banned book lists in Belarus:
- The official List of Extremist Materials
- The official list of materials deemed harmful to national interests
- An informal list, not publicly available, but well known to libraries and bookshops, which understand which authors must not be made accessible. This list is shaped by denunciations, visits from state ideologists, and self-censorship that has become the norm: any “mistake” may result in dismissal or imprisonment
Possessing such a book at home carries the risk of a fine or imprisonment – even if the ban was issued after the fact of ownership was established. In a dedicated section, we provide a legal assessment of book bans, outlining the potential consequences of possessing such books, distributing them, or even simply keeping them in a library.
- For offering a Belarusian, rather than a pro-Russian, view of history
- For criticising the authorities
- For telling the truth about repression and war
- For expressing compassion, humanity, and love
- Even for a white-red-white cover design
Books on culture or Belarusian history are placed in the same list as genuinely extremist texts. PEN Belarus compiles its own list of titles that, under international standards, cannot be legitimately banned because they do not constitute crimes. Belarusians face a unique reality: books are banned not only for political disloyalty, but simply for being Belarusian — when their content does not align with the regime’s pro-Russian policy. This represents a direct threat to the survival of the language, literature, and culture. In striving to preserve their identity, Belarusians must not only operate without state support but also actively resist state-imposed restrictions. At present, the printing of many Belarusian books within Belarus is impossible. On the one hand, independent publishers have been liquidated or forced into exile and can no longer systematically supply books to the country. On the other hand, the language, theme, or author of a book can itself become grounds for publishers still operating in Belarus to refuse to print it.
- The pain of banned books – a journalistic overview of the large-scale, systematic banning of books in Belarus, which has reached unprecedented proportions since 2020.
- Independent Belarus. 1991–2025. Our present. This category includes books by those who speak about the Belarusian language, memory, dignity, and political or moral alternatives. These are the voices shaping Belarusian narratives over recent decades, now under attack.
- The Soviet Period. 1917–1991 includes the works of Soviet-era writers who survived the ideological machine but still found words of truth (words the authorities want us to forget).
- The Russian Empire. The 1800s – Roots of prohibition is dedicated to the roots of Belarusian literature, written in the people’s language and feared by the empire. Today’s regime continues to ban them, still afraid of the very idea of Belarusian identity.
- Breath of freedom. The “wrong” foreigners. This section compiles examples of banned books by international writers, from essays on democracy to novels about human dignity, love, and choice.
This perspective reveals that today’s wave of censorship is not accidental, but the continuation of a long struggle against Belarusian culture, memory, and free thought.
- 330+ books banned for political or ideological reasons
- 274+ authors under prohibition
- 5 independent publishers liquidated in the past five years *
- At least 30 writers are behind bars
*However, more than 20 Belarusian publishing houses now operate abroad.
This publication has been produced with financial support from Norway and Human Rights House Foundation. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of PEN Belarus and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the Government of Norway.
