Published: Just now
A Belarusian journalist working for the Polish television channel Belsat has been sentenced to five years in prison for participating in protests against the regime.
52-year-old Iryna Slaunikava is convicted of having worked for an “extremist” organization and having participated in protests against President Aleksandr Lukashenko’s government. The sentence is harsher than the prosecutors demanded.
Belsat, which reaches Belarusians via YouTube, has been declared by the regime to be extremist, and Slaunikava is the third journalist who works for the company to be sentenced in the country. Last year, Yekaterina Andrejeva and Darja Tyultsova were convicted for coordinating demonstrations through a live broadcast on television. Andrejeva was sentenced again this summer, to eight years in prison for treason.
In addition to the three Belsat journalists, 29 journalists are detained in Belarus, either convicted or awaiting trial.
The Belarus Union of Journalists protests the verdict, saying in a statement that “journalists are not extremists and dissent is not a crime. The authorities continue to persecute journalists for using their freedom of expression”.
In the Polish capital Warsaw, two demonstrations were held on Tuesday and Wednesday in support of Slaunikava.