Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), who co-chairs the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission and authored the Belarus Democracy Act of 2004, will lead a congressional hearing on February 3 focusing on human rights in Belarus. This will be his eighth hearing dedicated to this issue.
The hearing comes as Belarus, under President Alexander Lukashenko’s rule for over three decades, continues to suppress democratic opposition. Since 2020, authorities have intensified their crackdown. However, diplomatic efforts led by the Trump administration resulted in the release of 123 political prisoners since 2025. Despite these releases, more than 1,100 political prisoners remain detained and much of the pro-democracy movement operates from exile.
The event is scheduled for Tuesday, February 3rd, 2026 from 2:30 to 4:30 PM at the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington D.C. The agenda includes discussion of the current human rights situation in Belarus and U.S. government actions supporting democracy and fundamental rights there.
Witnesses expected to testify include Sergey Tihanovski, a former political prisoner; Dzianis Kuchynski, head of international affairs for Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya—the president-elect of Belarus; Vytis Jurkonis from Freedom House Lithuania; and Jasmine D. Cameron, an international human rights lawyer affiliated with American University Washington College of Law.
Chris Smith has represented New Jersey’s 4th district in Congress since replacing Frank Thompson in 1981 (https://bioguide.congress.gov/search/bio/S000522). He was born in Rahway, New Jersey in 1953 and currently resides in Manchester Township. Smith graduated from The College of New Jersey with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1975.
Other members of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission are also expected to participate alongside invited witnesses.
