Nasha Niva's camera operator not allowed to film rally

A camera operator of Nasha Niva newspaper was detained at the Freedom Day rally. She spent about an hour at a police station.

Tatyana Hayrylchyk was detained in the pedestrian underpass near the Academy of Science.

The journalist was detained because she was taking video of policemen in the pedestrian underpass and they didn't like it.

The journalist said to the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ) on the phone that policemen had seized her press card and gone away to “consult with their bosses”. They didn't take away her mobile phone, though one of the policemen wanted to do it.

The journalist was set free in 90 minutes. No police reports were drawn up.

BAJ deputy head Andrei Bastunets gave his comment to charter97.org on the detention of the independent newspaper's journalist:

“Journalists perform their professional duties at rallies. Detention of journalists during rallies is illegal interference with their work.”