A prominent journalist in Belarus was sentenced Wednesday to six years in prison, the latest step in a years-long crackdown on opposition figures, independent journalists and human rights activists.
Today in #Belarus a journalist Pavel Mazheika and a lawyer Yulia Yurhilevich were unjustly sentenced to 6 years in prison. This case sheds light on the troubling persecution faced by journalists and lawyers who are simply fulfilling their professional duties. pic.twitter.com/GQeEmorHpO
— Tatsiana Khomich (@TatsianaKhomich) July 26, 2023
On trial in the city of Grodno in western Belarus, Pavel Mazheika, 45, was found guilty of “complicity in extremist activity” for covering the activities of the political opposition.
He was accused of working for news outlets including Belsat TV, which broadcasts in Belarusian from its base in neighboring Poland. The Belarusian authorities have labeled Belsat as “extremist.”
Lawyer Yuliya Yurhilevich also was sentenced to six years in prison after she was accused of giving Mazheika information on Belarus’ political prisoners, notably on dissident artist Ales Pushkin who died in a Belarusian prison earlier this month.
Yurhilevich, 42, who practiced law for almost 18 years and defended human rights activists, was stripped of her license in February 2022.
“This is not a trial, but a theater of the absurd – a journalist and a lawyer are being tried for disseminating information,” Mazheika said during the trial.
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Belarusian journalist and rights lawyer sentenced to 6 years in prison
