Belarus’s release of political prisoners is being welcomed as a humanitarian step. And on its own terms, it is one. People should not be imprisoned for dissent. But authoritarian concessions are rarely spontaneous. They are transactional. Such releases usually signal pressure points: sanctions fatigue, diplomatic bargaining, or regime recalibration. The act looks moral. The motive is strategic. And the timing is rarely accidental. The mistake is to treat these moments as breakthroughs rather than signals. They don’t indicate transformation. They indicate negotiation. In authoritarian systems, concessions are not endings. They are messages. #Authoritarianism #Belarus #HumanRights #GlobalPolitics