US embassy praises Belarusian journalists on World Press Day

May 3, BPN. A free press is the bedrock for an open, transparent and democratic Belarus, the US embassy in Minsk has said on Facebook. The mission expressed its gratitude to Belarusian journalists “for the courageous work.” On the 30th World Press Freedom Day, the American embassy said 32 journalists were behind bars in Belarus.

The EU said that journalists in the country and elsewhere “continue to pay a high price for exercising their profession.” “Independent and pluralistic media is vital for resilient and healthy democracies,” the EU’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, said in a statement. “The EU condemn all forms of threats and violence against journalists and support media workers in danger.”

The Swiss-German human rights organization Libereco went on Twitter to express solidarity with all the reporters and bloggers in Belarusian prisons. It wrote about several jailed journalists, including Iryna Leŭšyna (BelaPAN media company), Maryna Zołatava (Tut.by portal) and Andrej Pačobut (Hrodna-based journalist of Polish origin).

The Slovak embassy in Belarus noted that the country’s independent media “have been facing systematic repressions since the rigged elections in 2020, with many of the journalists being arrested.” “We condemn any abuse of power to oppress media and stay behind independent Belarusian journalists!” it tweeted.

According to the Viasna center, Belarusian and Lithuanian journalists protested in Vilnius on May 3, holding pictures of their colleagues in Belarusian jails.

Belarus ranks 157th in the 2023 World Press Freedom Index, released by Reporters Without Borders today. It ranked 153rd last year.