The Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ) is a Belarusian professional association of journalists from independent media, created in 1995 to protect freedom of speech, freedom of information, promote the professional standards of journalism, conduct monitoring of Belarusian press, and offer legal support to all media workers.
The Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons were first published by Jyllands-Posten in late September 2005; approximately two weeks later, nearly 3,500 people demonstrated peacefully in Copenhagen. In November, several European newspapers re-published the images, triggering more protests.
Alyaksandr Kazulin is the former leader of the Belarusian Social Democratic Party and one of the candidates who ran for the office of President of Belarus on 19 March 2006. He was a rector of the Belarusian State University (BSU) from 1996 to 2003 and a government minister serving under Belarus President Lukashenko but later fell out of favor. He holds a PhD in mathematics and pedagogy.
A continuous presence of Islam in Belarus began in the 14th century. From this time it was primarily associated with the Lipka Tatars, many of whom settled in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth while continuing their traditions and religious beliefs. With the advent of the Soviet Union, many Muslims left Belarus for other countries, particularly Poland. Presently, the Belarusian Muslim community consists of remaining Lipka Tatars, as well as recent immigrants from the Middle East. As of 2007, there were 45,000 Muslims in Belarus, representing 0.5% of the total population.
The government of Belarus is criticized for its human rights violations and persecution of non-governmental organisations, independent journalists, national minorities, and opposition politicians. In a testimony to the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, former United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice labeled Belarus as one of the world's six "outposts of tyranny". In response, the Belarusian government called the assessment "quite far from reality". During 2020 Belarusian presidential election and protests, the number of political prisoners recognized by Viasna Human Rights Centre rose dramatically to 1062 as of 16 February 2022. Several people died after the use of unlawful and abusive force by law enforcement officials during 2020 protests. According to Amnesty International, the authorities didn't investigate violations during protests but instead harassed those who challenged their version of events. In July 2021, the authorities launched a campaign against the remaining non-governmental organizations, liquidating at least 270 of them by October, including all previously registered human rights organizations in the country.
Islam is the state religion of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and most Jordanians are Sunni Muslims. The kingdom prevents blasphemy against any religion by education, by laws, and by policies that discourage non-conformity.
Tut.By was an independent news, media and service internet portal, one of the five most popular websites in Belarus in the Russian language, and the most popular news web portal in the country. After its owning company was closed down by the Minsk Economic Court in June 2022, its successor Zerkalo.io remains online as of September 2022.
Andrzej Poczobut is a Belarusian and Polish journalist and activist of the Polish minority in Belarus. He lives in Hrodna, Belarus.
Natalya Radina, also known as Natalya Radzina, is a Belarusian journalist and the editor-in-chief of the independent news site Charter 97, which publishes many articles critical of the regime of Belarusian president Aleksandr Lukashenko.
Maria Kalesnikava is a Belarusian professional flautist and political activist. In 2020, she headed Viktar Babaryka's electoral campaign during presidential elections of 2020 in Belarus. Kalesnikava represented the united campaign of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, then she became a member of the presidium of the Coordination Council formed during the 2020 Belarusian protests in opposition to the regime of Alexander Lukashenko. She is also a founder of the 'Razam' political party.
Ihar Uladzimiravich Alinevich is a Belarusian anarchist political prisoner. On 22 December 2021, he was sentenced by a Belarusian court to 20 years of prison.
Katsiaryna Anatolewna Barysevich is a Belarusian journalist. She is a staff correspondent for the independent news site Tut.By. She has worked for European Radio for Belarus and other media. She reported on the death of Raman Bandarenka in 2020. She was arrested on November 19, 2020, in Minsk.
Andrej Aliaksandraŭ is a Belarusian journalist, activist and political prisoner.
Roman Dmitriyevich Protasevich or Raman Dzmitryevich Pratasevich is a Belarusian blogger and political activist. He was the editor-in-chief of the Telegram channel Nexta and chief editor of the Telegram channel "Belarus of the Brain".
Nexta is a Belarusian media outlet that is primarily distributed through Telegram and YouTube channels. The YouTube channel was founded by then 17-year-old student Stsiapan Putsila. The channel's headquarters are located in Warsaw, Poland, after its founder went into exile.
Jahor Aljaksandravič Marcinovič is a Belarusian journalist who is currently serving as chief editor of Nasha Niva since 2017. In July 2021 he was arrested for alleged debts of the newspaper to the electric company, estimated damage amounted to 10,000 Belarusian rubles ($3000). On March 15, 2022, he was sentenced to 2.5 years in prison. Human rights activists in Belarus have recognized him as a political prisoner.
On 11 March 2022, Mark Izraylevich Bernstein, a Belarusian blogger and contributor to the Russian Wikipedia based in Minsk, was detained by GUBOPiK personnel after online accusations of violating the Russian 2022 war censorship laws for his editing of Wikipedia articles on the topic of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. He was sentenced to 15 days' administrative arrest under Article 24.3 of the Administrative Code of Belarus. After that period, he was kept in detention; on 24 June 2022 he was sentenced to three years of restricted freedom and released from custody.
On 7 April 2022, Pavel Alexandrovich Pernikaŭ, a 30-year-old Belarusian human rights activist and Wikipedia editor, was sentenced to two years imprisonment for "discrediting the Republic of Belarus" by making two edits to Wikipedia about political repression in Belarus and posting one article to the website of a human rights organization about torture and extra-judicial killings in Belarusian detention centers. Days after his imprisonment, he was recognized as a political prisoner by Belarusian human rights organizations.
Marina Zolotova is a Belarusian journalist, chief editor of Tut.by media outlet since 2004. In 2021 she was arrested under charges of large-scale tax evasion; later political charges were added to her case. She is considered a political prisoner by the European Union, the United States of America, and numerous human rights defenders. On March 17, 2023, she was sentenced to 12 years in prison.
