MINSK -- Prosecutors in Belarus are seeking eight years in prison for an independent journalist on charges that many consider ungrounded and politically motivated as a crackdown on independent media and civil society continues in the country that has been run by the authoritarian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka since 1994.
Syarhey Satsuk's relatives said on October 21 that prosecutors asked the Minsk City Court to convict the chief editor of the Yezhednevnik (Daily News) website on charges of bribe-taking, inciting social hatred, and abuse of office.
Satsuk, an investigative journalist whom Belarusian human rights organizations have recognized as a political prisoner, was arrested in early December 2021 after police searched his home. It remains unknown what exactly the charges stem from as the trial that started on September 23 is being held behind closed doors.
Satsuk's relatives said the verdict and the sentence of the journalist are expected to be handed down on October 26 in an open court.
Satsuk is one of 28 Belarusian journalists who are currently in custody, many of whom have been jailed since an August 2020 presidential election where Lukashenka was officially announced as the winner.
Rights activists and opposition politicians say the poll was rigged. Thousands have been detained during countrywide protests over the results and there have been credible reports of torture and ill-treatment by security forces. Several people have died during the crackdown.
Lukashenka has refused to negotiate with the opposition and many of its leaders have been arrested or forced to leave the country.
The United States, the European Union, and several other countries refuse to acknowledge Lukashenka as the winner of the vote and have imposed several rounds of sanctions on him and his regime, citing election fraud and the crackdown.