(RSF/IFEX) – RSF has called on the Belarusian authorities to stop their systematic destruction of the country’s independent media and expressed great concern about the worsening state of press freedom. The call came as the Belarus Association of Journalists (BAJ) staged a one-day protest to focus attention on independent newspapers that have been forced to […]
(RSF/IFEX) – RSF has called on the Belarusian authorities to stop their systematic destruction of the country’s independent media and expressed great concern about the worsening state of press freedom. The call came as the Belarus Association of Journalists (BAJ) staged a one-day protest to focus attention on independent newspapers that have been forced to close.
“Privately-owned newspapers in Belarus have been under threat in 2003 as never before,” said RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard. “At least 10 have been suspended, prevented from publishing or refused official registration. The authorities have been extremely resourceful in coming up with bureaucratic harassment techniques and have used absurd legal manoeuvres to stop the publication of newspapers that refuse to carry the propaganda of President Alexander Lukashenko’s regime.”
“They are especially hard on those who have supported ‘Belorusskaya Delovaya Gazeta’ – the independent daily with the largest circulation in the country, suspended in May – by printing its articles in their own pages,” Ménard said.
The authorities have also targeted media support organisations such as IREX/Promedia and Internews, depriving many newspapers of computer resources and documentation vital to their functioning (see alerts of 11 and 10 July 2003).
The BAJ protest included a round-table debate, the awarding of the Dmitri Zavadsky prize and a photo exhibit.
