WASHINGTON – During the past three months of a violent and contentious election season in Europe’s last autocratic stronghold, RFE/RL journalists in Belarus have faced the most intense harassment since they first began working inside the country 30 years ago.
“Our journalists have spent more than 125 days behind bars since June 25,” said Alexander Lukashuk, director of RFE/RL’s Belarus Service. “In the course of covering the presidential election and the more than 50 days of protests that have followed, they have been harassed, beaten, jailed and stripped of their accreditation.”