{"id":45738,"date":"2023-02-16T17:32:50","date_gmt":"2023-02-16T14:32:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/api.pozirk.online\/articles\/eu-uk-demand-freedom-for-bialacki-pacobut-other-political-prisoners\/"},"modified":"2026-02-24T20:29:13","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T20:29:13","slug":"eu-uk-demand-freedom-for-bialacki-pacobut-other-political-prisoners","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/45738\/","title":{"rendered":"EU, UK demand freedom for Bialacki, Pa\u010dobut, other political prisoners"},"content":{"rendered":"

February 16, BPN.<\/span><\/b> Repression by Alaksandr \u0141uka\u0161enka\u2019s regime continues unabated, according to the EU\u2019s statement<\/a> on political prisoners in Belarus, delivered to the OSCE\u2019s Permanent Council in Vienna on February 16.<\/p>\n

The statement reads that at present there are \u201cover 1,440 political prisoners\u201d in the country. <\/p>\n

The EU says it is \u201cunacceptable\u201d to persecute \u201cpersons belonging to national minorities,\u201d such as Poles living in Belarus.<\/p>\n

\u201cLast week, a court in Hrodna pronounced another politically motivated verdict: a Belarusian-Polish journalist and member of the board of the independent Union of Poles in Belarus, Andrzej Poczobut [Andrej Pa\u010dobut], was sentenced to eight years in a penal colony on trumped-up charges of \u2018incitement to hatred.\u2019 This disgraceful verdict is directed not only against this courageous journalist, but represents yet another act in the anti-Polish campaign of the Belarusian authorities,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n

The EU called the ongoing trial against the Viasna human rights group, including Nobel Peace Prize winner Ale\u015b Bialacki, \u201canother alarming step in the violent campaign against civil society.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe EU strongly condemns the brutal repression aimed at silencing any independent voices and closing all space for democratic debate. The persecution of civil society, democratic activists and human rights defenders in Belarus must stop. We will continue to support all the people striving for a free, democratic and independent Belarus,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n

It urged the Belarusian authorities \u201cto immediately and unconditionally release and rehabilitate all those unlawfully detained, [\u2026] to stop violating human rights and fundamental freedoms of the Belarusian people, to engage in a genuine and inclusive dialogue with the democratic forces, and to enable a peaceful political transition to a democratic society.\u201d<\/p>\n

British Deputy Ambassador Deirdre Brown in her statement<\/a> to the OSCE also called on the Belarusian regime to immediately release all political prisoners.<\/p>\n

She mentioned the sentence on Poczobut, pointing that the journalist \u201cis known for his reporting on the anti-Polish nature of \u0141uka\u0161enka\u2019s policies and the treatment of the Polish minority by the Belarusian regime.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThirty-three media representatives are currently imprisoned in Belarus. The safety of journalists is the key to media freedom. We need to hold to account those who threaten and harm journalists around the world,\u201d the ambassador said.<\/p>\n

Following the meeting of the Permanent Council, Polish envoy to the OSCE Adam Ha\u0142aci\u0144ski expressed confidence that \u201cBelarus will prevail over totalitarianism.\u201d \u201cThis will happen due to the courage of its people, including those imprisoned by the regime. Abuse of power ends with loss of power,\u201d he tweeted<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

February 16, BPN. Repression by Alaksandr \u0141uka\u0161enka\u2019s regime continues unabated, according to the EU\u2019s statement on political prisoners in Belarus, delivered to the OSCE\u2019s Permanent Council in Vienna on February 16. The statement reads that at present there are \u201cover 1,440 political prisoners\u201d in the country. The EU says it is \u201cunacceptable\u201d to persecute \u201cpersons […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":75,"featured_media":0,"template":"","rubric":[16],"class_list":["post-45738","articles","type-articles","status-publish","hentry","rubric-politics"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nEU, UK demand freedom for Bialacki, Pa\u010dobut, other political prisoners | Pozirk<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"February 16, BPN. 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