JURIST Belarus correspondent Ulyana Belaya is a student in the International Law and European Union Law program at the European Humanities University, Vilnius, Lithuania. She left Belarus in September 2021. The text of this dispatch has been lightly edited to preserve the author’s voice.
The 2022 edition of the World Press Freedom Index put Belarus in 153th place (having 39 points out of 100). It was a big shock for Belarusian civic society to find out that an international evaluation had put Belarus in a better place than, for example, Russia. In particular, Belarusian experts are deeply concerned about the state of media here. As Ihar Ilyash, an independent journalist in the recent past and a political prisoner at the moment, said in 2021: “probably, there is no more space for alternative thought in this country”.
A siugle fact captures the level of repression of mass media. One of the oldest Belarusian newspapers, – “Nasha Niva” (the literal English translation would be “Our Field”), founded in 1906 – is now recruiting only recruiting journalists who do not live in Belarus and have no relatives there. That requirement is the only way to prevent workers from being detained, arrested, convicted and sent to prison.
But I would like to dive deeper and tell the story of the pressures against free media in Belarus. One might think everything started with the mass protests in 2020 or the suppression of non-governmental organisations in 2021, but the story is older and worse.
Right after Lukashenka and his cronies came to power in 1994, the prosecution of free media started. At those times it was mainly the prosecution of Belarusian language media with a focus on national culture and ideas. That was a part of actions taken against our national language, Belarusian (Lukashenka displaced it from its status as the only state language through an illegal referendum in 1995). Because they stood up for the national interest, the newspapers “Svaboda” (“Freedom”), “Imya” (“Name”), “Pahonya” (the name of the Belarusian national symbol), “Salidarnast” (“Solidarity”), “Zhoda” (“Agreement”) and many others were closed. It must be pointed out that liquidations of media outlets were always accompanied by violent house searches, detentions of employees and the filing of criminal cases against them. Moreover, there were cases of severe beatings, murders (such as what happened to Veranika Charkasava in 2004, who worked as a deputy chief editor) and involuntary disappearances (notably the case of Zmitser Zavadski). None of these cases were properly investigated by the state. Civil society was just left groping for answers.
By the year 2005 all the broadcasting stations, both radio and TV, that had expressed support for the opposition to Lukashenka’s regime had been liquidated or their had their licence revoked. Since it is quite difficult for TV or radio to function without officially given broadcast, freedom of thought was mostly exercised in newspapers. However, some people managed to circumvent the restrictions, such as “Belsat” did. They simply registered in Poland and started broadcasting from there, reaching Belarus as well.
As might be expected, the next wave of repression was exercised against newspapers and magazines, first those that had professional unions and later regional ones that managed to keep freedom of speech going because of their isolation.
Despite all the obstacles, free media kept working. They moved to the Internet, worked ‘illegally’, transferred their staff to other countries and so on. Even that situation, however, worsened in 2021.
Let me just name all the independent media that have had members of their staff seized as political prisoners or were closed after the enforcement of new law regarding media in July 2021:
- TUT.BY, the biggest news web-page;
- Euroradio, revocation of licence was unofficially explained as “part of the sanctions against EU”;
- Nasha Niva, one of the oldest newspapers, existing from 1906;
- Nasha Niva’s projects for children;
- Brestskaya hazeta, regional Brest media;
- Media-Polesye, Brest region media;
- Intex-press, Baranavichi region media;
- by, web-page about gadgets and their sales;
- Virtual Brest, Brest region media;
- Pershy rehiyon, local web-page of Ivacevichi;
- Motsniya naviny, Homel regional media;
- Hantsavitski chas, from Hantsavichi city
- Inform-chas from Luninec region;
- Novy chas, political magazine.
Unfortunately, repression continues. Telegram channels and webpages are still being prohibited and blocked. Even online sticker-packs are banned. However, brave people keep giving publicity to Belarus, working either in enforced emigration from the country or under the constant threat of arrest and even the death penalty, which still exists in Belarus.
