Following the fraudulent presidential election in Belarus on 9 August 2020, journalists have faced hundreds of arrests and detentions. The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ/EFJ) join their Belarusian affiliate, the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ), in condemning the indiscriminate repression by the regime of dictator Alexander Lukashenko. The IFJ/EFJ and BAJ demand the immediate release of the 30 journalists and media workers currently imprisoned in Belarus.
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is unveiling the portraits of journalists who are arbitrarily detained in Belarus, where media personnel have been hounded by the regime ever since the disputed election held on 9 August 2020 that gave Alexander Lukashenko another term as president.
As 23 May marks the anniversary of the hijacking of a plane by Alexander Lukashenko's regime to arrest journalist Raman Pratasevich, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) reminds the world that 27 media professionals are locked up in Belarusian prisons and urges for their release.
March 2022 in Europe and Central Asia: A free expression round up produced by IFEX's Regional Editor Cathal Sheerin, based on IFEX member reports and news from the region.