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The editor-in-chief of an independent Belarusian-language newspaper is sentenced to four years in prison. Human rights groups deem the move politically motivated.
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Belarus Weekly: Belarus ranks lowest in Europe for rule of law yahoo.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from yahoo.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
May 20, 2021 Share
The European Union has slammed Belarus for its closure of the country’s biggest independent online news publication, Tut.by, as one of its reporters left prison after serving six months for her reporting on the death of a protester killed during a crackdown on demonstrations against authoritarian ruler Alexander Lukashenko.
In a statement on May 19, an EU spokesman called the blocking a day earlier of the popular news site an “act of continued repression and intimidation” against independent media.
Belarusian authorities also raided Tut.by’s offices in Minsk and other regions, and the homes of its journalists and employees, breaking the door leading to the apartment of Maryna Zolatava, the site’s editor in chief. The Minsk-based Vyasna (Spring) human rights group said on May 19 that 12 women and two men who worked for the publication had been detained.
Opposition leader urges UN to halt Belarus media crackdown thetelegraph.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from thetelegraph.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.