Officials seize independent-media equipment ahead of presidential election
“[My paper] gives alternative information, and the authorities do not like that,” an editor told CPJ. New York, August 23, 2001—In an ongoing crackdown on the independent press during the run-up to the September 9 presidential elections, Belarusian government officials have seized computers and other office equipment from several publications. Some of the equipment had…
CPJ protests harassment of independent press
Your Excellency, The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is deeply disturbed by your government’s recent harassment of several new independent media outlets. And we heartily object to a recent presidential decree that will make it easier to imprison journalists who criticize the government.
Police confiscate special edition of independent newspaper
New York, August 20, 2001—In the latest crackdown on the independent press before the September 9 presidential election, police from the State Committee for Financial Investigation seized 400,000 copies of the independent triweekly Nasha Svaboda on Friday, August 17, according to local and international sources. The special election issue, which endorsed Vladimir Goncharik, the only…
Independent television station head flees country
Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), an independent organization of journalists dedicated to the defense of our colleagues around the world, is deeply concerned by the criminal charges of forgery against TV ALC director Shukhrat Babadjanov.
CPJ monitor denied entry
In addition to state control, CPJ has documented intimidation and direct attacks against the independent media. London, August 8, 2001—The Belarusian embassy in London has denied a visa request by Emma Gray, a UK-based consultant with the Committee to Protect Journalists who intended to monitor press conditions in Belarus in advance of the September 9…
CPJ condemns attacks on journalists at G-8 conference in Genoa
Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), an independent organization dedicated to the defense of press freedom around the world, strongly condemns the brutal attacks by police officers and demonstrators on journalists covering the Group of Eight (G-8) summit of the world’s industrialized nations in Genoa from July 20 to July 22.
Georgian Journalist Found Dead
New York, July 27, 2001–A popular 26-year-old Georgian journalist was found dead in his Tbilisi apartment yesterday, according to local and international reports. Georgy Sanaya was shot once in the head at close range with a 9mm weapon. Sanaya anchored “Night Courier,” a nightly political talk show in which he interviewed Georgia’s leading politicians on…
Wife of missing cameraman calls for independent investigation
New York, July 27–The wife of missing Belarusian cameraman Dmitri Zavadsky called on the United States and the international community to establish an independent commission to investigate her husband’s disappearance and other politically motivated deaths and disappearances in Belarus. Svetlana Zavadskaya visited Washington, D.C., for four days in mid-July with a small delegation that included…