Iryna Khalip will be given a prestigious prize for defending the freedom of speech

Iryna Khalip, the deputy editor-in-chief of the Belorusskaya delovaya gazeta, has been awarded a Henry Hannen prize "in recognition of her brave support of the freedom of the press and the making of the democratic system in the homeland". The BelaPAN agency quoted the press service of the Embassy of Germany to Belarus.
"Germany pay close attention to how the press works in other countries. Newspapers and individual journalists of Belarus have been repeatedly awarded prestigious German prizes in the field of journalism. Often as we may recall the past, we should look to the future. The links between the civil communities of Germany and Belarus become quite vivid in that", says the special statement by the Embassy of Germany to Belarus.
The awarding ceremony will take place on 20 May in Hamburg. It is believed that the prize will be awarded in the presence of the Federal Minister of Foreign Affairs Joschka Fischer.
Background information provided by BelaPAN: The Henry Hannen prize established in 2005 by the publishing house Gruner + Jar and the weekly Stern is awarded to journalists in the following nominations: a report, a journalist expose, humorist report and photography. Also, the prize is awarded for contribution in the defense of the freedom of press in Germany and abroad.