Hrodna: another BAJ member warned by Prosecutor

On December 17, Andrei Mialeshka, Hrodna member of the Belarusian Association of Journalists, was summoned to the city’s Prosecutor's Office. The journalist was questioned by Deputy Division Chief of Hrodna Regional Prosecutor’s Office Valery Paviadaika. It concerned a report on the site of the Belarusian Radio Racyja under the pseudonym Ihar Mikalayeu that covered a memorial action held on October 27 to mark the anniversary of the 1863 anti-Russian uprising. As a result, Andrei Mialeshka, although his authorship of the material was not proven, was officially warned for working without accreditation.

This is the third warning issued by prosecutors to Hrodna journalists this December for coverage of the same action in the town of Svislach. Earlier, the Prosecutor's Office issued similar challenges to Aliaksandr Dzianisau and Ales Kirkevich. It is noteworthy that representatives of the prosecuting authorities issue warnings, but do not give any documents.

Independent journalists are increasingly pushed beyond the legal framework, as they have no opportunity to receive official accreditation.