Poczobut wins Sakharov Prize

October 22, Pozirk. Jailed journalists Andrzej Poczobut in Belarus and Mzia Amaglobeli in Georgia have won the 2025 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, European Parliament President Roberta Metsola announced.
Poczobut was nominated by the European People’s Party Group and the European Conservatives and Reformists Group.
“He is a journalist, essayist and blogger from the Polish minority in Belarus, known for his criticism of Alaksandar Łukašenka’s regime and has become a symbolic figure in the struggle for freedom and democracy in the country,” MEPs said.
Poczobut was repeatedly arrested and given eight years in prison after being detained in 2021. He has often been held in solitary confinement without proper medical care with his current health situation unknown. MEPs demanded his immediate and unconditional release.
Every year, the European Parliament awards the Sakharov Prize to outstanding people and organizations who defend human rights and fight for democracy and the rule of law. This year’s nominees included journalists in Palestine, Franco-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal and Budapest Pride.
Poczobut held in penal colony’s isolation wing amid health decline
- Economy, Politics, SecurityLithuania appeals to EU for help in returning trucks from BelarusThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsExiled politician urges Europe not to build wall for BelarusiansThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics, SecurityLithuania reports a rise in irregular migration amid tensions with BelarusThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics, SecurityBelarusian general blames West for tensions, avoids underlying causesThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics, Security
- PoliticsPro-Russian influencer Alekseyev granted asylum in BelarusThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- SocietyMore Belarusians register with Poland’s ZUS system for pension and disability benefitsThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsCichanoŭskaja calls for greater support for democratic forces in Belarus and MyanmarThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Economy, Politics, Security
- PoliticsCriminal prosecution of dissidents, censorship reported on November 27, 28The material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics, SecurityBelarus sentences former Ukraine volunteer fighter Vieramiejčyk to 13 years in prisonThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsUN committee says persecution for white-red-white flags is a violation of right to hold opinionsThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics, Security, SocietyThree Belarusians arrested in Poland on suspicion of spyingThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsMinsk outraged by Vilnius’s refusal to engageThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics, SecurityBelarus-EU irregular border crossings hit four-year highThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics, SocietyBelarus designates 23 as extremists, three as terroristsThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsBelarus designates music radio station as extremist groupThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics, Society
- Economy, PoliticsŁukašenka travels to Oman as part of his Asian, African tourThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- EconomyHouseholds’ disposable income up 4.5 percent in Q3 – BiełstatThe material is available only to POZIRK+

