Belarusian journalist for Radio Liberty on hunger strike

RFE/RL

Journalist of the Belarusian service of Radio Svoboda detained by security forces in Minsk on July 16, continues her hunger strike for the second day. Inna Studzinska demands to allow hew defense lawyerto visit her, as Radio Liberty reported. 

As of July 21, she and her colleagues Oleh Hruzdylovych and Ales Dashchynsky remain in pre-trial detention on Okrestin Street in Minsk.

Among these three, only Ales Dashchynsky could speak to his lawyer on July 21. There is no information on charges pressed against them, the three were not interrogated yet.

As IMI reported, on July 20, it became known that journalists of the Belarusian service of Radio Liberty - Oleg Gruzdylovich and Oles Dashchynsky - were detained for 10 days in Minsk.

Last year, these journalists were deprived of Foreign Ministry accreditation.

There is no information about the third detained correspondent of Radio Liberty Inna Studzinska.

The case is being handled by the Minsk Investigative Committee. According to the edition, no one contacted lawyers, although the lawyers sent a notice of defense.

Journalists Oleh Hruzdilovych, Inna Studzinska, and Oles Dashchynsky, who worked for Radio Svoboda for many years, were detained on July 16. Their apartments were searched. Relatives and colleagues still are unaware of what the journalists are accused of.

As IMI reported, On July 16, security forces in Belarus searched journalists working for Belsat TV. 

On the same day in Minsk, in the office of the Belarusian service of Radio Svoboda, during a search, security officers broke down doors and seized equipment.

As IMI reported quoting BAJ, on July 18, in 60 days more than 60 searches were conducted in the media outlets and the homes of journalists in Belarus.

As IMI reported, on July 14, mass searches and detentions of activists, human rights activists, and journalists took place throughout Belarus. In particular, searches took place in the offices of at least 13 NGOs, including the Viasna Human Rights Center,  the Lawtrend rights group, the Association of the World's Belarusians Batslaushchyna (Fatherland), the Names project, the Territory of Rights group, the Gender Perspectives human rights organization, the Belarusian Association of Journalists, the Union of Belarusian Writers, the Belarusian Popular Front, the For Freedom movement, and the BEROC Center of Economic Investigations.