Journalist Padabied charged with membership in extremist group

April 20, BPN. Authorities have accused journalist Pavieł Padabied of being a member of an extremist group, the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ) reports citing the arrest order for the journalist’s car.

Padabied allegedly participated in unauthorized activities in July 2020 and in the following days, authorities said.

The journalist was arrested in Minsk on January 20, one day before his planned trip abroad and charged over his 2012 social media posts linking to media that were declared “extremist” 10 years later.

After his arrest, pro-government media published a picture of Padabied’s press card from the days when he worked at the now-defunct BelaPAN media company.

He was first sentenced to 15 days in jail for sharing opposition content and then charged with facilitating “extremist” activities.

Padabied refused to testify during the investigation.

Currently, 33 media workers remain behind bars in Belarus, according to the BAJ.